New Beginnings
by Elizabeth Perry
Summary: Sexis. Set a couple of months back, no CarSon remarriage or Ric acting like a jerk even more than he was. Just Sexis and maybe some other characters.
1. Chapter 1

Characters: Duh Alexis and Sonny.

Summary: Hmm, let's just say that Sonny wakes up to what he put everyone through and now is ready for forgiveness and a second chance. I started this story a couple of months back so Sonny/Carly re-marriage hasn't happened nor Ric turning into a complete a!. I've decided to continue with this story and wanted to set the foundation.

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**Chapter 1**

When he walked into my den, the last thing I wanted was to see his worthless face. You see for the past couple of weeks, I had been going through what some would call a mid-life crisis; others might call it a revelation. I at this point, was calling it stupidity. Stupidity on my part. I let her leave my side and it wasn't until she was faced with an illness that had the ability to take her away from her kids and me did I realize I wasted time. I wasted a lot of my time on the wrong things, wrong women and now reality was giving me a slap in the face. The one woman who made me believe I was better than my past was now leaving my life forever and in addition to feeling pissed I was feeling powerless and for a man like myself, a man who had made his life resting on the power he portrayed by the simple sound of his name was unacceptable.

"What do you want?"

The smirk on his face made me want to wipe the floor with him but with the help of the medication I was currently on, my more violent impulses was being controlled at a better pace. He looked me in my eye and for a second I saw a flicker of regret for what he was putting everyone through. A flicker of regret for the destructive path that he had chosen that was causing all of this chaos within our family.

He threw a manila envelope of papers at me; my eyes barely betrayed any emotion at the movement he had just exhibited. I looked up at him refusing to greedily scan over the papers instead infuriating him more because I wanted him to say it. I wanted him to acknowledge the path that he had chosen and what happened as a result of it. I wanted him to know that with the throwing of the papers my way he had in essence claimed that his reign of terror was over. No longer could he get at me through the one woman he always knew was my weakness. He didn't have her blinded anymore to his faults, he had seen to that one almost single handedly.

"These are the papers you've been waiting for since you heard about my little incident with her. You've been waiting for a chance to ruin my life, here's your chance."

I snort at his ability to twist the situation around to suit his reality, "You screwed over your wife and it's my fault that your life's ruined? I wasn't the one that jumped into bed with her stepdaughter that was all you. For once, just accept the fact that you were wrong and the only way that you can help exonerate your guilt is this packet of papers which you just laid down."

His gaze left mine as he looked down and softly said, "All I ever wanted was for you to step up to the plate and be a brother to me. I never got that from you, I never got anything from you but reproach and disdain."

I look at his bowed head and for once feel nothing more than the urge to send him flying from this room at any means necessary, "You speak of brothers yet you kidnapped my wife. You speak of family yet you slept with Carly and tried to make her think it was me, you speak of brothers yet when I let you be the surrogate father to my daughter you screw over everything and everyone. What the hell do you think I've been doing these last couple of years? I've been dealing with you and your inability to realize what you have. Let it go, we will never be close. You've had one too many chances and not a one of them have you used for good. This is the only thing, I will ever be grateful for. This is the one time that you did something selfless."

He looked up at me, "You know don't you?"

I refuse to acknowledge his statement simply meeting his phrase with a raised eyebrow.

He started to grin and I felt the tremblings of fear in my chest, "What do you think you know?"

He sat down at once triumphant and ridiculous, "You know that what you thought was love wasn't and now you are faced with the fact that you may never get her back. You are faced with the fact that you wasted years trying to hate the one woman who made you worthy of yourself."

I look away instead choosing to focus my attention on the water bottle that used to reside in the place of the bar and ignoring the sound of his voice which was quickly becoming like fingernails running down a chalkboard.

"Is that why you can't look at me now? Is it because you realize that every word I'm saying is the truth? Well to tell you the truth, I've been waiting for this moment for years. For years literally and now that you just dumped the victory into my lap I will enjoy it."

I met his gleeful gaze with one of intense hatred, "What are you talking about?"

He stood up looking for all the world like a cat eating cream as he spoke, "You always believed it was Carly that was the love of your life. You always believed it was her that set the sun, moon and the stars but one time, one time when I was in the room with you and her and I watched you watching her, I knew. She was the love of your life, she made you complete and then I set out to take your place in her heart."

I walked over to the bar and gripped the water bottle holding it so tightly that I was sure it was going to explode in my hands. He knew that she was the one woman that I had a weakness for and he had exploited it and her all the while using my child.

"I must admit when I first met her I was intrigued how a common thug like yourself had convinced an Harvard graduate to lower her standards and then day by day I became more intrigued with her when I saw that you were still struggling to be a part of her life. You wanted to be back where you once were but you had no way of making that happen."

I looked up at him from the water bottle I was still gripping and said, "Are you admitting that your child with Alexis was a lie that your life with Alexis was a lie? That you never felt anything for her at all?"

I was ready to pounce on him barring the response that came out of his mouth next. He looked up at him and again I saw regret, "I did a stupid thing. I fell in love with the object of my vengeance. I was determined to use her to get you back but I didn't realize that I had fallen in love with her. She turned the tables on me; she let me in to her soul, not all of it of course because there were still pieces of her soul that you inhabited. Pieces that I never got to touch, I did love her and I know she loved me but I ruined it."

I let go of the water bottle and proceeded to face the man that I once tried to look at as my brother but now was only faced with the disdain that I held for him. I wanted him out of my life and out of her life and out of my face for good. Choosing instead to ruin the image that he had of me that I would go off and give him the beating he deserved I motioned to the papers. "Are those finalized?"

He looked up at me almost shocked that I had not continued to discuss the self destructive path he had started on and what it obviously meant to him and mine but instead focusing on the reason that he was in my home at this moment, "Finalized, notarized and actualized. She is once again a free woman retaining full custody of Molly. Why did you go through all these motions if she's death bound anyway? I could always have them revoked and retain custody of Molly, while I love Kristina she's not going to stay with anybody but you."

I look him in the eyes and speak, "She's not dying. She's just giving up hope and I'm giving it back to her with these papers, these papers which help set right so many wrongs that were made, these mistakes that we made with our lives aren't helping her get better. This just starts the path."

He looks at me and meets my gaze with a snort of his own, "You truly believe that after everything she'll take you back. She'll let you in that heart of hers and she'll allow you by her side?"

I refused to give him the satisfaction of knowing that those thoughts were the same things running through my mind. "Our business is done here Ric. Stay away from Alexis and the girls until she's strong enough to handle you and then you better pray that every word that comes out of your mouth is good because anything to upset her and your ass is mine. Get out of here."

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Let me know your thoughts. 


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks for the replies, I think I'm going to switch POV's back and forth so this chapter is Alexis and next  
chapter is Sonny.

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Chapter 2 

Pneumonia. I had pneumonia and even though the doctors didn't want to admit it, I was dying.

Alexis Davis was dying. Maybe I should say Natasha Davidovich is dying.

Either way it adds up, for all the hoping and praying that I had done that I wouldn't be taken from my girls at an early age I was being dealt a faulty hand. Maybe this was my punishment for all the hell I had wreaked on my life. Sighing I stand up and reach for my trench coat. I know that Sam will be back any moment and I don't want her to see that I've left so I reach for the extra pillows in the closet and create a fake body and reach for a wig and prop it under the covers.

As I stand back and look at my work I'm proud of the bed I've made. It looks as though, I'm resting peacefully. I dim the lights and walk out into the hall hoping that I can escape the hospital unnoticed.

I take the first cab that I encounter out of the hospital and I enter the cemetery unnoticed and stop in front of the graves of the people I came to see. The first grave I stopped at was the grave of my granddaughter. I knew that for the world, Lila, my granddaughter had ceased to exist the moment that she had saved Kristina's life. The truth of the matter was that Lila was someone I regularly visited; I just didn't want Sam to know. I didn't want anyone to know that the fact that I had a grandchild and that she was taken from me was another list of guilt I had added to my sins.

I place the single, yellow rose on her grave and speak softly, "Lila, it's your grandmother. I'm sorry that I didn't come visit you this week sweetheart, I've been busy. Your Aunt Kristina sends her love; she wants you to know that she's drawing pictures of you and that she prays for you every night just like she prays for my sister. I'm sorry that you weren't given the chance to be born. I think that it you had been given a chance to live, your mother would've been happier. She would've had something to hold on to when I came into her life and tried to re-arrange it. I'm sorry that you aren't here to help your mother and aunts through my death but I know that you are in a better place. You and my sister and watching down on my girls all of my girls from heaven and for that I'm forever grateful."

I wipe the tears away from my eyes at the emotion I feel and then stand up and stop in front of Kristina's grave and sit down. I feel too weary to keep standing and so I lean against the headstone and speak softly, "Well Kristina, we've come full circle. I'm dying but I'm pretty sure you already know that. I'll be dying shortly and the only regret that I have is that I've not led the type of life that would grant me access to the peaceful place that you are currently residing in with my grandchild. How does it feel to have your great niece with you? I know that you're looking over Lila and protecting her and I'm sure that she is blossoming under your guide. I'm sorry I didn't know how to valorize everything you gave to me when you were here. I was scared, I had lived my life closed off from my emotions and then you came into my life like a whirlwind pushing me to embrace my feelings, to speak my feelings and I didn't know how. I guess it's easier to tell you my feelings now, now that it's only a one-sided conversation. I'm scared to die Kristina. I know that when I die all of my sins will swallow me up and I'll be headed straight to hell. A place that even though I deserve, I'm terrified of. I hurt so many people in my life and I've been hurt back. I'm sure you know that Sam and Ric slept together, I still can't believe it. It felt like someone had gone inside my chest and ripped my heart out."

I pause in my discourse to wipe away the tears that had started falling unabated down my face, "I know how you felt when you thought that Ned and I had sex and created your niece. It was this sense of betrayal, this sense of helplessness that leaves you wounded and broken. I felt that and for the first time, I realized how I treated you before your death. I'm sorry Kristina. I'm sorry that my love for Sonny proved to be the catalyst to your death. I'm sorry that I didn't know how to embrace my feelings; maybe if I had then I wouldn't be in this position now. I have pneumonia as I'm sure you know. I escaped from the hospital to see you and Lila to say goodbye. The doctors want to induce a coma and they want me to be unconscious while they fight the virus that's attacking my system. I'm going to speak to Ric and Sam before I go under. I want Sam to raise the girls. I know, I'm actually leaving the care and wellbeing of my two youngest children to Sam, I know that it may seem like I'm making a wrong decision but I truly believe that she's repentant for her actions. I see it in every face she sends my way, its filled with so much guilt, guilt that I know all about. I'm going to let her in and ask her to do the impossible, what I wasn't able to do. I'm going to ask her to leave Jason Morgan alone. I don't want history to repeat itself."

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I clear my throat as Sam enters the room. She stares at me nervously and I motion for her to sit down, "Pneumonia. It's pneumonia."

She gasps and I feel her remorse in my soul, "Sam, I've come to ask you a favor. A favor you may say? What right does the woman who gave me up have to ask for a favor and your right and if you want to deny I'll completely understand but I wanted to ask you anyway."

Sam nods and reaches for my hand. I'm tempted to snatch it back. Alexis Davis never showed her vulnerability to anyone. It was a sign of weakness, a sign of weakness. A sign that I'm already exhibiting just by admitting that I have cancer. "I want you to raise the girls."

Sam shakes her head, "Don't talk like that, you are going to fight. Whatever the doctors need to do to get rid of the pneumonia they will, and once they do that…"

I can't stop myself, I interrupt her, "They can't start the chemo until the pneumonia is gone and they can't get rid of the pneumonia without putting me in a medically induced coma. I know it sounds odd, I wanted to reach for my laptop when they told me but I'm trying. I'm trying to let the doctors control everything and even though you've only been my daughter for a short time, you know how much I hate not being in control. Back to my request, do you think you can raise the girls?"

Sam starts swiping away tears and I want to pull her in my arms. I know that she had betrayed me in the worst possible way a woman can be betrayed but she was my daughter and even though it was hard, I had to look past her faults and embrace her because she was my daughter. A daughter, that I didn't have the chance to help raise, a daughter that I didn't get a chance to help mentor. I can't ask anymore from her than the product of her surroundings. "Alexis, I don't want to say yes because it will just make it that much more real in your life, I want you to fight."

I smile at her and say, "You are good. I know that it's not easy for you to continue to be by my side after everything but I do appreciate it. I do need this Sam; I need your promise that you will raise the girls if I die."

Sam nods, "I'll raise the girls but what about Ric?"

I flinch at the thought of my husband. The thought of him disgusted me to no end and I didn't know how I was ever gong to look him in the eye again, "I'll deal with Ric, Sam don't worry. But before you accept there's another stipulation I want to make and its one that I'm sure that you're not going to like."

Sam steels herself and I know what she's doing, she's preparing herself for my next statement. I started to demand that she not be in Jason Morgan's life because he put the life of her and her sisters in danger. That approach hadn't worked, it had never worked, I needed to try a different approach.

"The night that you were going to leave town and I had you brought to me Sonny came to me office early in the day to warn me of your actions. He was pleading your case, telling me about how you loved Jason and how I couldn't understand because I had never been that much in love. Do you know that I think I heard my heart break in that moment? I had never been that much in love? I, Alexis Davis, who had given everything up for Sonny Corinthos had never been that much in love? Yes Sam, I'll admit it freely, the love of my life is Sonny Corinthos. I know I've been with guys before and after but no one else has even come close to being my soul mate. He's the reason for so many of the mistakes, I've made in my life. I loved him Sam, I really did. I followed him blindly, I didn't listen to my fiancée Ned, I didn't listen to my ex-husband Jax and I didn't listen to my sister Kristina. They all wanted to warn me that Sonny was going to break me but I couldn't listen, because they had never been in love like I was in love. I had met the man who could look into my eyes and see the persons that I was trying to be and the scared little girl that I was still trying to hide…."

The coughs start to wrack my body and Sam gets up and starts to call the doctor when I shake my head emphatically, I have to confute this story. I have to make her understand before I can be put under. I motion for my inhaler which she swiftly appears with and helps me to use. As I feel the air coming back into my diseased lungs, I lay back against the pillows and close my eyes exhaling softly.

I hear her voice from far away, "Alexis, you don't have to continue if this is going to make you ill. That's the last thing I want."

I sit up and look her in the eyes, "I know Sam but I need you to know that I understand. I understand that me wanting to keep you away from Jason made you angry because I was furious when the people in my life tried to keep me from Sonny. He was the only man who understood me, the real me and I didn't want to give that up so I didn't. I didn't give that up and I gave it all up when Carly came back from the dead after faking her death."

Sam looked at me in shock and I shrugged, "When she came back at her own funeral, I was suspicious I wanted to know the truth. I had an investigator determine where she was, she took a vacation away from Sonny to make him pay for being with me. Jason knew all along and kept her secret. I was going to tell him when he told me that he still loved her, so I walked away. It was easier than confronting the fact that I had been in a one-sided love affair, I still had my pride and even though I loved the man more than my next breath I wasn't going to fight against his feelings. It hurt like hell but I tried to move on with my life until I found out I was pregnant with your sister. I had just decided to tell him when Carly threatened me at her 'I'm alive' party."

Sam leaned forward enthralled by my words; I guess she had never been privy to my side of the events. I'm sure she was aware of Carly's distorted view of how I pined after her husband relentlessly but she hadn't heard the truth. My truth. "She pushed me down and I think the subconsciously it was then that I made the decision to keep Kristina a secret from Sonny. You have to understand, this wasn't about me not loving Sonny or being vindictive because Sonny hadn't chosen me it was about my childhood. If I make it through this coma, I'll tell you about the hell Helena Cassadine can wreak on a young girl who didn't know that she wasn't God. I wanted to protect my child from Carly, something I'm sure that you can relate to. Then I noticed that Sonny was changing, the man who thought before he acted had disappeared. The man who was compassionate with those around him was no longer there, and whether it was the self destructive relationship that he had with Carly, I didn't know. I didn't care, I just knew that I had to leave Sonny and Carly and protect my child and I did but I lost my sister in the process. She found out the truth and was going to tell Sonny that Kristina was his. She died because of me, because of my association with a man that I loved more than my own life."

Sam is openly crying now and I can't comfort her. I need her to understand my emotional turmoil and what I'm asking her and if I hold her than I won't be able to continue, "Sonny is the love of my life. I know what it's like to be in love with a dangerous man. I don't want you to have to carry this same guilt that I walk around with daily Sam. I want you to go home to your sister's and look them in the eyes and you'll see what I'm saying. You love your sisters, but if you love Jason more, I'll try to respect your decision. I just needed you to know that me keeping you from Jason had more to do than me wanting to run your life or payback for anything that had happened."

Sam stands up as the sobs roll down her cheeks and she leans in and kisses me softly on the forehead. I try to stop myself from flinching because I don't want to admit that I still am wary of her touching me as I still have been unable to get the photo of the two of them rolling around on the floor out of my mind. "Alexis, I'll stay away from Jason. I promise, I'll raise my sisters and I'll be the kind of daughter that you can be proud of, I promise."

I feel the tears start rolling down my cheeks at her heartfelt announcement and I clear my throat, "Can you please call Jax and Nicholas for me? I want to say goodbye."

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Thoughts Please:) 


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: So I came to a decision while penning page 40 of this saga, I did Chapters 1 & 2 in Alexis and Sonny's POV  
to show that they love each other and are committed but need a new beginning. I'm tired of being in their heads so  
I'm just going to the story so from here on out, it should just flow.

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**Chapter 3**

Sonny was sitting outside of Alexis's room thinking, he was too old and had faced too much to be outside of a hospital room shaking but here he was. He had to admit, when he got the call from Sam suggesting that he should see Alexis he was shocked.

_Flashback (Minutes earlier)_

_"How's Alexis?"_

_Sam looked up at him through reddened eyes and spoke softly, "The doctors told me the cancer spread and it doesn't look good. She's scared and she just asked me for something that's going to be hard for me to do. She wants me to leave Jason so I can raise the girls." _

_Sam flinched as Sonny swore when she told him and he had been ready to go in the room and let Alexis have it until the next words stopped him dead in his tracks, "She told me once that you told her that you've never been in love like that before so you wouldn't understand." _

_Sonny turned to her in confusion but nodded, "Yea, I told her that and it was the truth, she's never been in the type of love that you and Jason were in I mean are in." _

_Sam looked up at him and in the next instance broke his heart with her next words, "She was in love with you like that. She just told me the love story that started with you being friends, going into something more and then losing it all when she lost her sister. She doesn't want history to repeat, she set aside her friends and her family for you and what happened, Kristina died. Who am I to deny her? Everything she spoke makes sense Sonny. It all fits, if she dies all she wants is for history to end with her daughter, that the love of a man a dangerous man who may be your soul mate doesn't end one of my sister's lives. I've taken too much from her already to deny her this wish."_

_To be truthful Sonny, hadn't heard one word that she spoke after she admitted that he had been a love that was unlike any other in Alexis's life. He had helped shape her who she was for good or bad. _

_Sam cleared her throat, "My mother has asked that you not be told that the cancer spread. I don't know what she's afraid of but I have to protect her wishes. Please don't tell her that I told you, whatever she's feeling; I want her to tell you." _

_Sonny was only able to nod because he didn't have anything else to do and was at a loss as how to proceed. Sam turned to me and said, "I need to go see Jason. I was prepared to ream her out for making me choose between the love of my life and making a home for my sisters. This makes sense and it pisses me off because it's just means that the reason, the hatred I had for her was unfounded. She wanted me to live a guilt free life unlike her and I hate myself for ever doubting her."_

_Sonny couldn'tt speak so he simply acknowledged her words with a simple nod as his voice cracked when he asked, "Can I see her?" _

_Sam shook her head, "Jax is in there with her. He's really been a great friend, bringing her plants, making her laugh just giving her everything she needs." _

_The jealousy that rose up in his throat threatens to choke him so he decided to leave, "I'll go see Lainey and then I'll be right back. I need to tell her something and it'll give **Candyboy** time to leave." _

_End of Flashback _

"Sonny?"

Sonny looked up at Sam who was busying wiping tears away from her eyes. He stood up and gently pulled her into his arms.

She pulls away and looks at him, "I'd been calling your name for the last five minutes, where were you?"

He shakes his head, refusing to let her see where his thoughts had gone at the thought of her mother. He instead tried to refocus her attention on the packet of papers he was gripping tightly. He hands them to her and says, "Signed, sealed and delivered he's out of her life."

Sam nodded and pulled the envelope into her side as if it were protecting her from what was coming, "She doesn't know you know, she doesn't know that I removed him from her life. I just wish I was able to do that for myself."

Sonny looked at her in confusion, "She doesn't know that her child initiated her divorce papers in her absence? I thought she was in agreement and why on earth would she want to remove her daughter from her life."

Sam looked at him and shook her head, "Jason told me something that she told him before she went into surgery when she asked to see him. When she saw him, she told him something that makes me feel like the whore I am and so I decided to dedicate my life to making my mother's life easier. That's part of the reason; I called you and asked for your assistance in getting the divorce from Ric and him out of the house."

Sonny gasped at her self destructive view of herself, "Sam what are you talking about, there's nothing that could justify you talking about yourself like that even if you did sleep with someone you shouldn't have."

Sam looked up at him and smiled, "I slept with my mother's husband Sonny. There isn't a way to remove the culpability of what I've done. She let me in her home, she made me a role model for Kristina and Molly and what do I do? I screw it up."

He shook his head as there are still too many things that are still confusing to him, "I still don't understand why you got a divorce in her name."

Sam smiled softly, "She gave me power of attorney when she saw that the cancer was getting worse. I had never thought to use it but when Jason took me aside I knew that I had to do everything in my power to remove him from my mother's life."

Sonny grew impatient at the buildup and blurted out, "What happened?"

Sam sat down and exhaled softly, "The day that she was struggling with her own immortality was the day she walked in on me and Ric having sex. She saw us, what I was so worried about her finding out she already knew. Instead of using it as a weapon, she kept it inside so that she could focus on the important thing which was fighting for her life. I hate to admit but I think the memory of that event was preventing her from fully focusing on getting better. She couldn't get the picture out of her head she told Jason. I always wondered why she flinched away from me when I touched or just tried to comfort her. Every time she looked at Ric or me she saw us together in her house."

Sonny sat down as the vomit threatens to choke his speech, "She saw the two of you?"

Sam nodded as she wiped away the tears, "I can't remove myself from her life because I'm her child but I can make sure that Ric never bothers her. At times the guilt threatened to choke me but he always seemed nonchalant like it shouldn't bother him that he broke his vows. I'm not worthy to stand by her side and once she beats this cancer, because she will beat this cancer I want her to have the one thing I never gave her since I knew she was my mother, peace. That's what these papers signify, peace for my mother and my sisters. Thank you for making this possible."

Sonny refused to acknowledge her pity party as his heart and mind was with Alexis in the room and the only thing he wanted at this moment was to leave this conversation and go into her room and hold her in my arms.

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"Sonny, I'm shocked to see you here. Is something wrong?"

Sonny could barely walk on his two legs as he sat down by her bed. He noticed that she looks so weary sitting in the bed, fighting for her life and even though in the past, his love has caused her nothing but harm and pain he still wanted to wrap her in it nonetheless. "I just wanted to check in; we really haven't got a chance to talk much after I said that Ric and Sam could raise the girls. I needed to see how you were doing."

Alexis smiled softly, "I really do appreciate you letting down your guard for a moment, but you don't have to worry about Ric, I haven't seen him around here and he doesn't seem to want to be involved. Sam has agreed to stay in Port Charles to help raise the girls in case something should happen. I just hope that I'm here to watch them grow up."

Sonny was hesitant to reach for her but his instinct to touch her is too great as he reaches for her hand. "You will be here to watch Kristina and Molly grow up. You'll help Sam with her wedding day no matter who it's to. You will fuss over Kristina and Molly until they get sick of you."

Alexis smiled slowly and nodded, "I hope that's true, I told Nikolas that I didn't want the girls growing up alone. I know what that's like, and I wouldn't wish it on anyone."

Sonny nodded, "Our past has helped shaped us for good or bad. I just wished my past with you could have had a positive effect on you instead of helping shape you for the worse."

Alexis looks up at him and is suspicious of what he knows by that comment and instead decides to tread carefully. She simply stated, "We all made mistakes."

Sonny let her hand go and stands up and walk over to her, "Will we ever get back what we had?"

Alexis shrugged her shoulders and swiped away some errant tears and said, "Sonny, I can't do this right now, I can't pretend that I can focus on this now…"

Sonny bent down and leaned over and kissed the top of her head which instantly calms her down and she reaches for his hand, "You've been a constant in Kristina and Molly's lives while I've been sick. Sam told me that when you come to see Kristina or take her somewhere you take Molly with you. I just want you to know that if I were feeling better, I would be happy to let you continue that tradition. I don't want the girls to ever feel distinctions between each other."

Sonny couldn't stop himself from squeezing her hand, "If you were feeling better, you would join us. That's all I'm waiting for Alexis is for you to feel better. Once that happens, you and I will have a long talk. A talk about the past, the present and what I want for our future."

Sonny can feel her trembling but he refuses to acknowledge that inside he's trembling as well.

Alexis cleared her throat and said, "In the spirit of being open, I think I should tell you something that the doctor just told me and I haven't told everyone else yet. You're the first I've told outside of Sam."

Sonny sat down as he braced himself to be terrified for the next words out of her mouth. "The doctors tell me that I have developed pneumonia."

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Sam looked up as Jason came and sat next to her, "Hey."

Jason nodded and sat down next to her and said, "Tell me what happened after I told you that Alexis knew that you and Ric slept together."

Sam swiped the tears that were falling from her cheeks, "What you thought I was suicidal? I must admit it sounded good but I wanted to be worthy of being Alexis Davis's daughter and how could I prove that if I took my life? Taking all the cowardice I've been walking around with and stand up for my mother and my sisters'. I can't believe it took my mother getting cancer and seeing me sleep with her husband to realize what kind of selfless woman she is. I used to ream her for being a horrible person, but the last thing I ever imagined was that she would turn out to be the one person I would need in my life more than my next breath. I get it now Jason, she wants me to be the best I can be."

Jason pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head, "It's going to be okay Sam."

Sam pulled away and shook her head and turned around to him, "How can it possibly be okay? My mother is fighting for her life and relying on her daughter to hold her and the family she created together. The family that I foolishly tried to destroy, and all because I thought she was trying to keep me from you and I wanted revenge. She wanted me to better myself and then if I chose to be with you I could, she wanted me to be on equal ground. I've ruined that and I get it now. I will never live up to being Alexis, but I can try to honor her wishes. Jason, I can't see you anymore. I love you more than my next breath but I can't devastate my mother anymore than I already have."

Jason felt the tears spring to his eyes, "I asked Sonny to take the business back, I'm ready to stand by your side as you help your mother with this cancer but then I want us to get back together. Can you at least give me that hope?"

Sam cupped her hand over her mouth as the tears threatened to come out, "Jason, there's a lot of anger and hurt that still lie between us, if you are willing to give the mob up for me that's a step. Here's another, I will work on being a woman that you can be proud of to call friend, girlfriend and maybe even wife someday."

Jason smiled, "I'm already proud of you, don't you know that?"

Sam tilted her head at him, "You've always been proud of me but I want my mother to be proud of the woman I'm trying to become. After I accomplish that and make myself feel worthy whether it's with or without you, I will be ready to try again. Until then, I need you by my side as a friend only."

* * *

Reply please. Thanks, EP! 


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I watched the episode 02/20/2007 and I clearly get what the problem is now. NLG is just too damn good an actress, when she wouldn't  
leave until she saw Sonny, I felt her. I felt the love/connection that still exists there and no matter how contrived the writers try to make Sonny/Carly  
redux 2000 it won't fly because even when they are fifteen feet apart, their chemistry flies off the screen. Sorry, mini-rant but I  
just don't like what's GH done with what could've been one of the best all-time GH supercouples! Back in my hole now:)

**Chapter 4**

* * *

Sam walked around the waiting room outside her mother's room and checked her watch continuously. As she paced back and forth her mind inadvertently returned to the conversation she had with her mother. 

"Sam! Sam!"

Sam jerked up in shock, "Jax, what are you doing here?"

Jax smiled softly at her, "I was about to go in and see your mother but I saw you sitting out here, what's going on?"

Sam smiled softly and moved over to allow him to sit down, "Sonny's been in there for awhile, I didn't want to disturb them."

Jax flinched visibly, "What is he doing in there with her?"

Sam looked up at him in confusion at the sound of venom in his voice, "Alexis was telling me about her relationship with Sonny and I wanted to hear a biased opinion. I hear everything against my mother and how Sonny was the poor, betrayed and tortured one. I just heard her story, I haven't asked Sonny's side yet but you were her best friend, what happened?"

Jax grimaced, "What happened? I watched my best friend; a normally sane woman, throw caution to the wind for the first time in her life and it cost her, the one thing she never thought she would regain but did, it cost her Kristina the sister she thought dead for the majority of her life."

Sam nodded, "I know the part about Kristina, I want to know what you saw when you looked at Sonny and Alexis together."

Jax stood up and breathed heavily, "As hard as this is for me to say, I'll tell you. When I saw Sonny and Alexis together, I saw how much love they were in but there were too many obstacles separating them. I'll admit I probably could've helped sort out all of the misunderstandings between them but I didn't, I preferred Alexis to get Sonny out of her system once and for all, as wrong as it is that's what I did."  
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"Pneumonia?" Sonny couldn't believe it. This couldn't be happening he was afraid of losing her to cancer, chemo and now pneumonia. Sonny cursed the fates because he assumed that they must be having a ball screwing over him for all the time he wasted. They didn't want to give him the second chance he so desperately yearned for.

Alexis looked at his hand which was tightly gripping hers and started to cry, "I'm tired Sonny. No one else will understand this like you but I'm tired of fighting, I want with all my breath to beat this but I don't know anymore. My will to fight is leaving me and I just need….."

Sonny couldn't resist the urge anymore and within moments, she was in his arms. He couldn't describe the feeling of having her warm body in his arms, it felt like, it felt like home. He knew it sounded absurd to admit that holding someone, anyone could feel like home but to him it did. He who never was blessed with having a feeling of comfort and security while he was growing up but now he was currently feeling everything by the fragile woman, he now held in his arms. He kissed the top of her head once more and pulled away and moved his hands from their location on her waist to her face. He gripped her face in his hands and prepared himself for the words that are about to come out of his mouth. "We will fight this, Alexis and we will fight this together. You have so much to live for; Kristina and Molly need you to be the excellent mother that you are for them. You know Sam's made a lot of mistakes but you have to help her become a strong, woman whose able to rise above her past."

He starts to hake inside as she pulls away slowly and stares searchingly into his eyes, "You know don't you?"

He can't deny the truth as he nods and sits down and thought of the white lie he was about to tell, "Jason told me…He did tell Ric and Sam. Sam feels horrible and….."

Alexis started to shake her head fiercely, "That's the last thing I wanted, I want the focus off of them and on the girls. I was too late to have an influence in Sam's life whether positive or negative and I don't want to be too late for them. I didn't want this to tear my family apart."

Sonny watched in horror as she starts weeping openly and can't help himself from shouting out, "Alexis, stop this now!"

He watches as she jumps at the forceful tone in his voice, "Alexis, what they did was wrong. Part of the reason you're not getting better is because you trying to force down all the rage, disappointment and betrayal you feel and aren't focusing on getting better. The only thing that you are doing is making yourself worse. You didn't deserve what they did to you, you don't deserve to have your life uprooted whether you were faced with a cancer diagnosis or not."

Sonny fell back into the chair again, exhausted by his own tirade. "I'm sorry, I just hate seeing you putting your feelings on the backburner again to focus on everyone else. Get angry or don't you remember when you told me that." Sonny knows that he can't stop so he pulls out his secret weapon and she crumbles because his secret weapon is one that he's always used to disarm people, his dimples.  
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"What was so wrong about them loving each other Jax?"

Jax shrugged, "Call it jealousy, or call it protection whatever it was I knew it was for the best that Alexis stay away from Sonny Corinthos. Sonny never knew how to deal with the emotions that Alexis provoked in him; he never knew how to let her go. He wanted her in his life so badly as an attorney even after Carly came back because whatever else she is or was to him, Alexis is a great attorney. She even overturned some decisions of mine I made against Sonny to ensure he was okay. She fought for him and over him but when the time came to fight for her, he walked away. It was easier to fall back in with Carly and all they did was self-destruct each other."

Sam swiped away tears, "Why does everyone, myself included walk over my mother and then expect her to continue getting up and taking it? I hurt her more than probably any other person on this planet has and what does she do? She bottles it up inside and instead decides to focus on the matter at hand dying, because she doesn't think she's going to live. I hate that I let the hate of others influence my feelings against her because whatever she was or tried to be she is my mother and I failed her Jax. I failed her."

Jax pulled the sobbing woman into his arms and allow her tears to mix with his at the thought of a life without the woman who had touched both of their lives so deeply.  
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"You were so not fair pulling the dimples out on me. I told you once that your dimples were lethal." He handed Alexis a tissue as she blows her nose and curls back up on the pillow.

Sonny's thrilled that he at least got a reaction out of her, "Sam was wrong but at least she's trying to repent and I'll handle Ric."

Alexis rolled her eyes, "Handle Ric? What does that signify that while I'm here fighting cancer I'll have to come up with some kind of defense to protect the father of Kristina from execution? I'm warning you; leave him alone he's after all your brother."

Sonny felt his laughter get the best of him as he started to roll his eyes at this, "He's my brother yes but wait a moment…." Sony felt his heart stop as the realization of what she just said ran through his brain. He would admit to himself that whenever he was with her he always felt like he processed things a bit later than she did.

"Did you just say that you would defend me if I were on trial? Why counselor were you propositioning to me to become my lawyer again?"

Alexis grinned at this and he felt his heart leap, "I would defend you under extenuating circumstances. As if it wasn't enough that I was raised by the woman who murdered my mother in front of my eyes, I refuse to leave the same type of legacy to my daughters. The idea that Kristina's father murdered Molly's mother is too much of a burden for the girls to carry."

He watched knowingly as her eyelids start to droop, "I agree but I've tired you out. Close your eyes and then I'll go check on the girls and I'll be back."  
She fought sleep as she raised an eyebrow at him, "Stay with me until I fall asleep, go check on the girls but you go home and get some sleep yourself. I don't want you sitting outside of my room waiting on me, you have a life."

He shakes his head in denial at the words that come out of her mouth as he pulls her limp hand into hiw own and kisses her knuckles gently and says, "Nothing is more important to me than you. You need to know that by now. I will be back because there's nowhere else I'd rather be. Also, I just want to say thanks. Thanks for allowing me to be back in your life."

He started to stand above her bed as he helped her position herself back under the covers and he helps to pull them up around her waist and he starts stroking her hair. Like the coward he admits he is, he waits until she's asleep before he says to her, "Thank you for allowing me to love you again Alexis."

* * *

Thoughts, please! 


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: Another update, thanks for the replies. I'm trying to make some changes to the plot and I don't know how it's  
going to work so please bear with me! Also, don't get used to the frequent updates, all of my shows are currently disappointing  
me so I have more time to write...Well maybe, you can get used to the frequent updates because I don't see that changing for awhile!

**Chapter 5**

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As Sonny walked into the lake house, he saw Kristina on the floor playing with Molly and bouncing around the living room. There are still times that he can't believe she belongs to him. That he created her, and that he was a part of her life still had the power to leave him breathless. He always yearned for a daughter that would look at him as if he hung the moon and Kristina always came through for him.

Sonny was jerked out of his thoughts by a screaming Kristina running into his arms, as he bent down to catch her and pull her close to his heart. He could only pray she always viewed him as a refuge for her, when she's happy, when she's scared.

"Daddy, did you see Mommy?"

He can't help but smile at this, ever since her mother had been in the hospital every other question out of her mouth was had he seen Alexis, like she couldn't imagine him anywhere else but with her mother. Well, his daughter definitely inherited her intelligence from her mother and she couldn't be more accurate.

"Of course I saw her princess and she told me that she misses you and loves you and gives you a big hug." Sonny dramatizes all of this for her benefit and starts tickling her which she appreciates and flashes her dimples his way that are so like his own that he almost can't believe it.

"You didn't say hi to Molly daddy, she's sitting over here all by herself." The truth was, she was safely nestled in her car seat but who was he to contradict his child.

Sonny nodded a simple hello to Viola and bent down and took Molly in his arms. This makes Kristina grin at him big and ask, "When do we get to go see Mommy at the hospital? Daddy Ric told me that he would let me know when, did you know that he left last night with a suitcase?"

Sonny still flinches at the term of endearment "Daddy Ric" and vows to talk to Alexis about it but focuses on the good news of her words. Ric had left the house, which meant his days in Port Charles were coming to an end. He was probably planning on hiding away until Alexis died and then come back and claim Molly and Kristina. That would happen over his dead body and Sonny's as well.

"No, pumpkin I didn't know that but how about this? I will take you over to my house and we can eat dinner together."

Kristina nodded enthusiastically but then frowned, "I want Molly and Sam to come to. It would be no fun without my sisters."

Sonny grinned at this, "I'm sure we can convince your sisters to come." He held Molly up in his lap and made faces at her and asked rather formally, "Molly would you like to come over to my house for a sleepover?"

Kristina starts giggling and then as if she's talking to somebody slow pulls him down to her level, "Daddy, Molly is just a baby she doesn't understand yet."  
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Sam walked into her mother's room who was napping comfortably and kissed her on the side of the head. At that moment Robin peaked into the room, "Sorry to interrupt, I just needed to know if your mother's made her decision."

Sam looked at Robin questioningly, "Her decision? What decision?"

Robin looked down at said, "I think you better let her tell you, I'm sure she was just waiting on you to come back to the room before discussing the latest with you. Now if you'll excuse me."

Robin shut the door behind her and Sam sat down in front of her bed. "What else, could be possibly be going on now?"

Sam sat down in front of her mother's bed and watched the gentle rise and fall of her chest becoming almost memorized by the motion. She didn't notice that her mother was focusing on looking anywhere but at her.

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Alexis cleared her throat, "They are going to put me in the coma tomorrow morning. It seems like the only option that I have but before I went under, I wanted something to happen but I don't know if its realistic, I don't even know if its fair but it's the only thing I want."

She looks as Sam leans forward, eager to grant her every wish and she smiles softly, "I want to divorce Ric. I know it seems like the day before I go under for a coma that the last thing on my mind should be divorcing my cheating spouse but my focus is on the wellbeing of my girls….all of my girls."

Sam starts to cry softly and Alexis shakes her head when she notices she's about to burst into apology, "Let's not discuss that please. I know what happened, I was there and even though my heart is broken over the betrayal I have to put that on the backburner. If I'm going to die then I want you to know you're forgiven but if I do live, I can't promise that I won't have a hard time getting over this, for now I want to divorce Ric. I have cancer and he hasn't been by my side, he doesn't come to the hospital, he's too worried about ensuring that he looks good at the DA's office. I can't go into a coma with that being the last mistake I don't correct."

She notices Sam smiling at her and she's curious as to what is the humor as she walks over to her bag and pulls out an envelope of papers and sits down after handing them to her, "I may have just become your daughter but I think that I'm starting to learn you." Alexis opens the papers and is in shock as she scans the documents.

She starts to feel the tears roll down her cheeks, "Divorce and full custody? How did you work this miracle?"

She smiles at her and in that instant, Alexis sees her. She sees Kristina her sister and feels the tears start to roll down her cheeks anew, "I must admit I had some help but I knew this would make you feel better. If you knew that Ric doesn't have a claim on you or Molly so while you're in the coma, your only thought should be focusing on getting rid of this damn pneumonia so you can fight the cancer once and for all."

Alexis nodded and as Sam stands up, Alexis decided to take a step. It's not a huge step, but it's a step, "Samantha?"

Sam turns around at the sound of her full name and looks at her in shock, "Yes?"

Alexis can't help herself as she opens her heart to her daughter and speaks freely, "I love you sweetheart." She didn't want to show her too much of her vulnerability so she leaves it at that as she presses the papers to her chest and curls up in her bed.  
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Sonny had rocked Molly to sleep after Kristina had fallen asleep their sleepover forgotten in the absence of Sam. She had gripped onto his finger with a strong grip and he knew that he loved her just as deeply as he loved his biological daughter Kristina. When he looked into her eyes, all he saw was Alexis and he knew that was all he was ever going to see.

The door opened and he looked up as Sam came stumbling in wiping away the tears from her eyes. She stopped short when she saw him sitting on the couch. She looked at her sister sleeping peacefully in his arms and she sat down across from him and said, "Why were you such an idiot Sonny?"

Sonny opens his mouth in shock and then closes it. She had asked a valid question, why had he been such an idiot to Alexis. He had the world in his hands and he denied it, He denied the importance of it and he let the lies of others take him away from what his heart was yearning for, "I can't give you an answer for that because I don't know Sam. I don't know, I do know I'll spend the rest of my life making it up to her. I can't live without her, it comes late but it came."

Sam nodded and Sonny thinks she's convinced of the sincerity of his words as she speaks, "Alexis wants a divorce from Ric. She told me that if she was going to be put into a coma, she wanted to know that Ric didn't have any authority over what happened to her or Molly. I told her about the divorce."

Sonny stopped rocking Molly as he stares at her in disbelief. Alexis had initiated the divorce? She wanted to be free of Ric? "So how did she take it?"

Sonny was robbed of getting the answer to that question immediately as Viola came down the stairs and reached for her young charge and said, "Mr. Lansing left last night Mr. Corinthos and Molly has been inconsolable without her mother or father. It's good that you come by and see Kristina and Molly, since Sam is so busy at the hospital."

Sonny nodded as he watched Viola walk back up the stairs and then turned to Sam, "What did she say?"

Sam smiled softly, "She said thank you and told me that she loved me. I hate myself Sonny and I'm struggling with these feelings of inadequacy. I don't think I should have stayed in Port Charles. Maybe if I left Alexis would be able to handle everything easier."

Sonny starts to swear under his breath, he's not in the mood for one of her self-pity trips and he tells her so, "Sam let it go. You screwed up, you slept with your mother's husband and it's not something you can change. You have to go from this moment on, just like Alexis is trying to do. She is trying to focus on the good that you've done and not the bad, just like she tried to do for me."

Sam smiled and stood up and walked over to him. Sonny didn't want to admit that he was feeling a bit of self-pity himself. She placed her hand on his shoulder and said, "Alexis isn't sleeping yet, why don't you go visit her? I'll stay here and watch over my sisters tonight."

Sonny didn't want to tell her how grateful he was for the chance to go back to Alexis's side but he takes the offer anyway.  
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Sonny pushed opened the door and stepped a moment inside just watching her, looking at her curled up in the bed and can't help but smile. He closes the door behind him and leans against it as he watches her sleep. She has the papers clutched to her chest and as he starts walking towards the bed, he notices the tears that had been running down her face. Sonny starts to swear to himself and reaches for the tissue and pulls up the seat next to the bed and start drying her tears.

"Now that won't do Alexis."

Sonny waits for her to acknowledge his presence which she does slowly taking her time to open her eyes and meet his gaze. "Sonny, what are you doing here? I thought you went home."

Sonny leans over and starts stroking her face which is so dear to him and says, "I did and I fed Kristina and Molly and put the girls to bed. Sam came home and thought you would like a visit from me which I don't know why she thought that would help." Sonny held his breath waiting for her to say that she didn't need him, she didn't need anyone. One of his greatest fears when we had been friends had always been that she would one day come to the realization that she didn't need him anymore because she was already so extraordinary on her own. She didn't need him and he would be left alone and she would be able to go on and wouldn't be affected.

Sonny was broken out of his reverie by her taking his hand. She grabbed on to it and pushed the papers into his hand, "Thank you Sonny. I know these signed papers wouldn't be possible if it wasn't for you. I do appreciate everything you've done for me and for Molly. Cruz called me and said that Ric left town."

Sonny rolls his eyes at the incompetent of Detective Rodriguez and swears under his breath, "What is Cruz doing calling you at the hospital when you are supposed to be resting?"

She smiles as their dimples meet and he can't help but forget what he had been so upset about, "Cruz is a friend of mine and not just an employee that I work with. I care about him and he cares about me too so when he found out what Ric was doing he decided to keep me apprised of the situation."

Cruz? Since when had it become Cruz? Sonny was jealous damn it, there were too many men out there who could recognize what kind of a woman Alexis was and want her by their side ruining his chance for repentance and a second chance. It was something that had plagued him every time he noticed her going out on a date with Cameron, Ned or even his own idiot brother. Would they finally realize what they had in Alexis and cherish her for what she was worth or would they follow in his footsteps and allow their defects to allow them to not see how necessary she could be to their lives? Sonny had been fortunate to date that every man that she had ended up with hadn't recognized what they had in her and had lost her foolishly for one reason or another.

"So Cruz is keeping you apprised of the situation? He told you that Ric left Port Charles and now what are you going to do?"

Sonny watched as she shrugged and said, "The papers have been filed with the court so I'm a free woman. A free woman and I won't ever take that for granted again."

Sonny leaned over and decided to be honest with her, she deserves it and maybe it can give her something to fight for, "Alexis, there's something I need to say."

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Thoughts please! God, I **love** and I **miss** my Sexis! Sigh! 


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: **So this chapter, sorta steers the story in a completely different direction, but I think its in a good way. So let me know your thoughts!  
So I'm trying to make a pact, every other day I try to update. Let me know your thoughts.

**Chapter 6**

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Alexis realizes that this is not the time for confessions, well maybe it is, but not his confessions. She still had things she needed to get done before she was put into a coma. "Sonny, can I go first? There are some favors that I need to ask of you and I won't be able to get it out if I don't start now."

Alexis felt a smile play on her lips as he nods his acceptance and grabs her hand. She held onto it for a moment, allowing herself to memorize the planes of his hands. She realized that they haven't changed too much in the years since they were intimate but she still marveled at the fact that he was here in front of her holding her hand. Alexis let his hand go as she notices the look of disappointment that crosses Sonny's face, a look that lets her know that he wasn't ready for their simple connection to be severed.

Alexis felt her heart jump into her throat and was ready to confess all when she remembers that she had a goal in mind. She leans over and reaches for the drawer next to her hospital bed and pulls out a manila envelope and pulls it close to her heart. She stared into Sonny's eyes which are looking at her confused and she says, "This is a project that I've been working on for months now. Emily, Nikolas and I are planning on breaking ground sometime next year. I know that even if I'm not here the project will go on but I wanted to ensure that someone could be there in case I'm not here to do it," She stops when she sees the look of anger in his eyes, "I'm not giving up Sonny. I'm not, I just am being realistic."

Alexis noticed that he shut his mouth when he realized that she's serious about this and she handed him the folder and waits for him to open it. As he does, she notices the tears that are streaming down his face as he meets your eyes in confusion, "Alexis, what's this?"

Alexis started to smile softly and let him in on one of her secrets, "The Lila Quartermaine foundation. It's a new wing of General Hospital that I'm funding in remembrance of Lila Quartermaine and my granddaughter Lila Morgan. They were two people in my life who made a difference and I want a wing noting that, the wing will be primarily focused on infants and their diseases and how to catch and treat them early. Whether it is cancer or infections any diseases from the time of conception until they are old enough to handle their own healthcare will be offered freely at this place."

As she finishes her spiel winded, she took time to reflect that this was the first time she had ever explained to anyone her goal for the hospital outside of the immediate family. She didn't want anyone to think she was trying to draw attention to herself she just wanted to make it happen. It was something she needed to do. She hadn't been by Sam's side when her daughter died and even though she had helped save Kristina's life Alexis still felt responsible for the pain that she saw in her daughter's eyes and wanted to do something to erase it from her memory.

Alexis had been so lost in her own thoughts that she jumped when he squeezed her hand bringing her back to the present as he spoke and says, "This is wonderful Alexis. I love the idea; I only wish I had thought of it sooner. What does Sam think?"

Alexis shrugged as she explained, "I don't know I haven't told her about it. I wanted it to be a surprise, something that she could look at with pride, pride of herself and pride of her daughter. I'm not usually included in that equation so I didn't want her to think I was trying to draw attention to myself. She has no clue."

Alexis stopped in shock she notices the tears rolling down his cheeks, she knows that she's shocked him but his next words are the ones that shock her, "God, you still have the ability to humble me Alexis. Here you are trying to take care of everyone even after they hurt you and you still give and give. When do they give back to you?"

Alexis inhaled a sharp breath as she realizes again that he still has the ability to read her mind. The piece of her heart that has been waiting for someone to give back to her had still gone untouched. He still had that uncanny ability to read her mind even after all this time apart and she was still flabbergasted by it. "Sonny, I didn't show this to you so you could feel guilty, I just need your promise that you will carry this through to completion if I'm not here."

Alexis waited on bated breath for his response when he gives her a sharp nod and says, "Of course Alexis, I would do anything for you."

Alexis exhaled softly as she held onto his last words using them to propel her into her next request as she utters, "Good because that leads me to my second request, I want you to marry me."  
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Sonny could've sworn that he was hearing things; did Alexis just ask him to marry her? Did the words marriage come out of the mouth of Alexis Davis, poster child for fear of marriage? Sonny opened his mouth, hesitant to admit that he was terrified that he had imagined that those words had come out of her mouth, "Alexis, did you just ask me to marry you?"

Sonny watched in fascination as she nods and looks down refusing to meet his eyes, "Sonny, I have cancer and I'm not deluding myself, I know I'm in for a long fight. A fight that I may not win but if I have nothing else, I want the girls to be together. I can't pretend that they will have a normal childhood with you but I don't know what else to do. If Sam decides that she can't leave Jason, I still want her to be in her sisters' lives. I'm also not stupid of the fact that however you coerced Ric into signing these divorce and custody papers if anything happens to me he'll be right back in Port Charles demanding custody of Molly, I need to know they will be protected, they will be protected legally. If the cancer is in remission in the next couple of months, you can divorce me and go back to your game with Carly but for now can you do this for me?"

Sonny leans back and watches her in shock as she struggles to show her vulnerability without letting him all the way in, "I'm sorry if I seem needy but at this stage in my life with everything that's going on around me, vulnerable seems to be the only emotion that I can convey. If you say no, I'll completely understand but I wanted you to know my thoughts."

Marriage? Marriage to the woman that he would admit that he had never stopped loving? It seemed like too good to be true, "Alexis, I will marry you but make no mistake about the reason. This has nothing to do with your diagnosis of cancer or the fact that my brother is an ass; this has to do with love. I love you Alexis."

Sonny waited on bated breath for her to tell him her emotions, but all she does is flinch and say, "Sonny, I'm not expecting declarations of love from you. I know its pity that's motivating it and while I appreciate the gesture, it really isn't necessary. I've learned to love and I've learned to lose. I just want security for my girls because I never want them to grow up like I did with no security."

Sonny can't believe it, she doesn't believe him? She doesn't believe that he could love her. He is so overwhelmed that he doesn't hesitate as he stands up and leans over and presses his lips insistently against hers, "I," kiss "love," kiss, "you". Sonny stands back in hope that his insistence has conveyed something to her but he stills sees the guarded expression that comes into her eyes and he knows that he's the only one to blame for putting it there. She had named him her soul mate years ago and he had been too stupid to pick up on the clues then and now her soul was something he was going to have to fight for along with her heart.

Sonny resigned himself to a long fight, a worthwhile fight but a fight nonetheless. He sat down and stared into her eyes, "I won't push you for now but I want you to know that I'm going to fight for us. When you are in remission, because you will be in remission I will show how you sorry I am for not realizing that I should've never let you leave my side. When do you want to get married?"

Sonny knows its quiet a feat but he has quieted her; I guess she wasn't expecting him to be so willing, so quickly accepting because she didn't know that this was his one chance to show her how much he loved her and how sorry he was for his mistakes of the past. "I don't know Sonny; I was going to leave that up to you. I told Dr. Trent, that I wanted to postpone the medically induced coma until I had this handled."

Sonny feels the anger rise in his chest but refuses to yell at his fiancée this close to their wedding, he should've known how stubborn she would've been about this, "Alexis, we are getting married tonight. I will find a Justice of the Peace and we will get married in the hospital room. While I'm out getting everything ready, you call Dr. Trent back and tell him that you will be ready for the coma tomorrow morning after you've said goodbye to the girls. Your health is the most important thing to me and it has to be the same for you."

She nods as Sonny reaches for the phone and steps out of the room content to complete his mission.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
Next Morning

Sonny Corinthos was a married man again. And this time, he felt complete, he felt whole. He couldn't begin to describe or to explain the feeling of pride he had that Sonny Corinthos, one time thug had the elegant, classy, and brilliant Alexis Davis as his wife. He couldn't be happier but he was also terrified. He wanted this to be the last marriage he ever had and he also didn't want to become a widower prematurely. As he opened the door to her hospital room he took a breath and a moment to smile as he saw her playing in bed with Molly on her lap and Kristina on her other side. He couldn't help but curse his brother, for not realizing what he had when he had it and then he recants as he realized that he's pleased that because of his stupidity he has left the way open for him to conquer her heart again, this time once and for all.

"Look Kristina, Daddy came to see you."

Kristina, his firstborn flashed him a brilliant smile as she perched on her mother's side and said, "Daddy, Mommy's going to take a nap and I'm going to sleep with her."

Sonny checked Alexis's eyes for an answer and was met with a gentle shrug of her shoulders. He walked over to the side of the bed and said, "Mommy has to go to sleep but it won't be like when you go to bed at night and then wake up in the morning, they are going to keep her sleep for a long time. They are going to give her medication."

Kristina daughter looks at him inquisitively and says, "So I can't sleep with her then Daddy? Won't Mommy be afraid in her dreams if we aren't there?"

Sonny leans over and presses a gentle kiss to his daughter's forehead and say, "Mommy will never be alone because she has Daddy, Molly, Sam, you and me. She has all those people so she won't ever be alone."

Kristina nods and lies down next to Alexis and starts playing with Molly's fingers, "Molly, Mommy said that we are going to live with Daddy while Mommy is sleeping. We can see Michael and Morgan all the time and Daddy is going to make sure that Sam comes right Daddy?"

She directs the last part of her statement towards him and he smiles and nod, "Of course your sister is coming over. I can't have the house without all of you there. Speaking of Sam, where is she?"

Sonny looked at his wife questioningly and then stops himself. She's his wife, she's his wife and he can call her that. He can yell it from the rooftops because she actually belonged to him. He had always been a selfish bastard and had everything dropped into his lap from the time that he started working for Scully but with her he always felt like it could never be enough. She didn't want anything he threw at her and he had to work for it, he had to work hard for it and then he let his own guilt ruin what he had worked so hard to create. Now, he had a chance to remedy that mistake and he wasn't going to waste anytime. "Sam is having breakfast with Jason."

Sonny flinched as he saw the hurt in her eyes and knows he's feeling her disappointment in his soul. Why the hell didn't Sam come to the hospital? He stands up and reaches for his phone even while Alexis is shaking her head asking him to leave it alone. Sonny scowled as he walked outside, he was her husband now and anything his wife needed, she got.

* * *

Dude, so where you shocked? No one was more than me and I was typing it, but it just felt right and for a moment, I  
needed something with my Sexis to feel right. Thoughts, please. 


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Next installment, fallout from the annoucement gets around.

Yea so umm, I had tried to do the every other day thing, but kinda too much pressure...I'm forced to write more! gasp! I'll try to update  
again this weekend or early next week but no promises!

**Chapter 8**

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Alexis didn't know what possessed her to tell Sonny the truth about Sam's whereabouts. Maybe it was because she had felt hurt that she was with Jason even though she was supposed to be put into a coma today. Maybe it was because she had hoped that even though she felt remorse for what she had done with Ric, that she still felt something for her. Anything but she could obviously see from her lack of presence in the hospital that she still resented her presence. It hurt, it hurt like hell. It was a hurt that she didn't know how to hide from Sonny. Sonny Corinthos was her husband. Unlike the other times that she had been married she finally felt a sense of completion. It was a sense that made her realize that she should've never married Ric in the first place. Alexis had to admit to herself that she didn't feel half as complete as she did with Sonny's ring nestled on her finger.

Even after knowing what he did for a living, Alexis still felt the children were safer with him than they would ever be with someone who was obviously mentally impaired and emotionally deficient. Alexis shook her head as she refocused her attention on her youngest children and kissed Kristina on the head, "When Mommy goes to sleep I need you to be good for Daddy and Sam. Do me a favor and keep an eye on Molly for me, sometimes she's going to miss me but I think that if you and Sam are there it won't hurt as bad."

Kristina nodded and said, "Mommy, your ring is pretty. Where did you get it? Did Daddy Ric give it to you?"

Alexis flinched at the hope in her voice and realize that she had caused her daughter to believe that she had a right to call Ric 'Daddy Ric'. She couldn't deny her own guilt in the equation, "Sweetheart, Mommy wants to talk to you. It's about Daddy Ric. Are you listening?"

Kristina nodded and said, "Yes Mom."

Alexis started to stroke her hair and pull her into her arms and kissed the top of her head, "Daddy Ric had to leave town. Mommy and Daddy Ric aren't going to be together anymore, he left. Do you understand?"

Kristina nodded happily, "Does that mean that you are going to marry my Daddy?"

Alexis felt a laugh of hysteria rise in her throat; this is exactly what she had gone and done. "Yes Sweetheart, this ring is from your Daddy. I married him last night and he's your Daddy, your only Daddy. You are going to stay with him, Sam, Molly and Viola in his house. You are going to be able to visit with Morgan and Michael all the times that you want, would that make you happy?"

Kristina started bouncing up and down, "Then when you get out of the hospital, can we go on vacation Mommy?"

Alexis felt the tears threatening to fall from her cheeks as she nods. At least she had done this right, her daughter was okay with the transition from Daddy Ric to just Daddy and she was pleased that she was going to be with her father for the majority of the time. Even if she didn't wake up from this damn coma, her daughter would have the assurance of her father by her side.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny couldn't help it when she answers; he growls his greeting into the cell phone, "Where the hell are you Sam?"

Sonny could detect the fear in the voice of the woman on the other side of the line, "Sonny what's your problem? I had to talk to Jason about something and then I'm coming over to the hospital. Alexis is with her real daughters now, she doesn't want me."

Sonny exhaled a deep breath as he's tempted to slap her even though she's not in front of him but he has to settle for a verbal tongue lashing instead, "I thought you understood that included you as well. She was near tears because all of her children weren't there. You are supposed to be by her side, no matter how you feel about her or how you imagine she feels about you. You have ten minutes to get here McCall, don't screw this up."

Sonny closed the cell phone before she has a chance to answer and exhaled a deep breath as he noticed Lainey leaning against the counter looking at him with a hint of amusement in her tone, "So tell me Sonny why do you feel the need to threaten Alexis's eldest daughter over the phone?"

Sonny exhaled and ran his fingers through his hair in disgust and noticed this has caught Lainey off guard and he look at her in confusion. As he pulls his hand down from his hair, he notices what has caught her eye. The ring on his finger was glistening and it was also a wedding band. She clears her throat, "I see congratulations are in order. I assume you remarried Carly last night, are you trying to insure that you make a good home for Alexis's daughters?"

Sony couldn't stop himself from flinching in disgust, "No I didn't remarry Carly. She's happily engaged to Jax and the last thing on my mind is whether or not she and Jax even make it to the altar. No last night, last night I married the love of my life and I've never been happier or more depressed."

Lainey puts a consoling arm on his shoulder and motions for him to sit down in the waiting area as she speaks, "Who did you marry last night that has you so up in arms Sonny?"

Sonny feels a smile crease his lips as he speaks softly, "I married Alexis. She's my wife and I don't think I've ever been prouder or more terrified."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Molly has just fallen asleep in Alexis's arms when Viola came in to take the girls out. She smiles as she positions Molly on her shoulder and then Kristina who doesn't want to leave, she pulls down from the bed. Alexis leaned back against the pillows after the door closes and sighs in sadness, as she reflects that this may have been the last time she would ever see my daughters again.

The door opened and Alexis notices as Sam shuffles in, "I'm sorry about that I thought you would want to be alone with your daughters. I don't really think that I fit into that equation."

Alexis shakes her head sadly, "Why would you feel that I wouldn't want you here? I was worried that you didn't care enough to come. You are just as much my daughter like Kristina and Molly are. Even though we don't see eye to eye on a lot of things in your life, it doesn't mean that I love you any less."

Sam starts to cry and Alexis feels bad, maybe she shouldn't have sprung her emotions on Sam so quickly but as she falls on to her chest with hiccupping sobs and starts to apologize while Alexis rationalizes that perhaps this was for the best, "I'm so sorry Alexis. I never knew how to value what I had by your side and now that it's almost gone, I'm frightened. I was so mad at you when I found out that you had kept Jason from me that the only thing I could think about was revenge not reasons, and when I found out the reason it made me hate myself even more. Sonny, Carly, Jason everyone told me that you were just a control-freak who didn't know how to butt out. I didn't understand that you had your own reasons, I didn't want to hear them I only wanted my pain to be the only thing I focused on."

Alexis starts to stroke her oldest daughter's hair and comforting her best as she could from her hospital bed, "Sam, I know that you are sorry. I know that you want to make it up to me but I want you to understand that the only thing I want to ask of you is to watch over your sisters and keep safe. Even if the love between you and Jason is strong and you can't give it up, please be careful. Please make sure that your sister's aren't in the line of fire. I don't want them to be hurt for any reason, I know it seems ridiculous considering some of the things my family has put other people through but they are something that we can't control. You can control their exposure to the mob, so please be careful."

Sam leans back and nods, "I had breakfast with Jason to tell him that I couldn't be his friend. That everything we had, had to die but it was so hard," This breaks her out into a fresh set of tears as I start rubbing her back and whispering words of comfort.

Alexis starts to hear herself speak and has to pause for a moment because she's not sure if it's really her talking or if it's imagination, "Go to Jason Sam. If you really love him, if he's the type of love that I have for Sonny go to him. I never fought for Sonny and at times I wonder what my life would've been like if I had fought for him. Would we still be friends? Would my sister still be alive? Would Molly exist? If she did exist, would Ric be her father or would Sonny? Would she have been a boy?"

Sam looks up at me and she see tears start anew as she speaks, "I love Jason Alexis but I don't know if I can go back to him. I love him but I can't grow when I'm with him, I live everything through him. I wanted to be good enough for him to love and not for anyone else but its not healthy for me to continue to allow myself to only be found in his eyes. I need to find out who I am with or without Jason."

Alexis feel the tears well in her eyes at the conviction in her daughter's tone, "I'm proud of you Sam." I stretch out my hand to her and before I can start to speak, she tugs on my hand and pulls it into her line of vision.

She pulls back and Alexis flinches at the look in her eyes, "What happened last night Alexis?"

* * *

Drama and I love it so let me know your thoughts:) 

A/N: So meanwhile as I'm typing this story, I use Lainey (only as a secondary character believe me) and as I'm typing into Microsoft  
Word, they underline it as if it's a misspelled word and then when it looks for possible replacements, first one up is Looney and I'm literally  
laughing to death because that's what I think of the advice she gives my Alexis but don't worry I won't make her fight to make Alexis believe  
she's wrong, she will only be there in a capacity to help Sonny (as I see fit). Just thought, I'd share so we all could get a laugh!


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Yea so ummm, don't expect to like Sam for the next couple of chapters. I have nothing against her but I  
think the following chapters are her misguided attempt to show she cares.

**Chapter 8**

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Lainey had been shocked to the core by Sonny's words. When they had their sessions, he had never touched on his feelings for Alexis other than she was the mother of his firstborn daughter. He had never had admitted that she was the love of his life because that was too personal and too important to share with just anyone and especially a person that he wasn't sure if he could trust.

"And Carly? What is Carly to you if Alexis is all of a sudden the great love of your life?"

Sonny flinched as he heard her words which sounded disbelieving to his ears, "Carly was a part of my life that I had to live to understand what true love meant. Carly and I are toxic to each other even though when we are together we love each other, we aren't good together. It took me awhile to realize that I wasn't good for her or her for me."

Lainey nodded as she motioned for him to sit down, "You make an important point, even if you love Carly you don't really benefit by being at her side. On the other hand, you are saying that Alexis makes a change in you for the better, would you say that's true?"

Sonny nodded as he admitted that she had accurately summed up his relationship with Carly and Alexis in a nutshell. "I love Carly because she helped me understand that I deserve to be loved, she fought for me and I foolishly equated fighting for me with love. I didn't know the true meaning of the word love until I met Alexis but I was scared, I wasn't used to be this vulnerable in a relationship so I went back to what I knew, needy women."

Lainey leans back and looked at him with a smile of disbelief, "So I guess you are going to make some changes."

Sonny laughed as he realize the truth of her words, "A lot of changes will be made but for now my whole being is focused on getting my wife well and ensuring that our girls don't miss her too much."

Lainey stood up and he watch as she pondered over her next words before she spoke, "Just promise me something."

Sonny starts to stand up as he notices that it's almost time for Alexis to be put under and say, "If it's rational, I'll do it."

Lainey leaned towards him as she patted him on the shoulder, "Promise me that even though you have finally grown up, you won't stop coming to therapy. I think the new Sonny Corinthos could use therapy as well."

Sonny laughed and nodded in acceptance as he stared at the door and wonder what kind of conversation Sam and Alexis are having.  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Alexis was waiting on bated breath for the reaction of her daughter on her marriage to Sonny. She didn't know why she was worried that Sam would be upset or infuriated but she needed her to know so she didn't hear from anyone else.

Sam had been sitting in shock for at least two minutes by her count and Alexis was starting to get concerned. She patted her softly on the hand hoping to rouse her and she's successful as she looks at me and speaks, "Why did you marry him? I thought you were worried about me being with Jason because of this same reason."

Alexis nods in agreement, she had a point. She had hammered into her the importance of protecting her family from unnecessary danger, and in between the Cassadines and the mob there wasn't away that could be avoided always. "I know and I'm not backing down from what I'm saying. I still believe that the lifestyle that Jason and Sonny lead are dangerous and it could get them killed but I also know that they love the girls and would do anything to ensure that they are okay."

Sam shakes her head as if she still not believing what she's saying and Alexis decides to be completely honest with her, "Sam, there's always a chance that I might not wake up from the coma and I know that you don't want to hear that because it would make my disease all the more real but reality is what I'm facing. I'm staring down some pretty heavy odds and if there is a chance that I could die, Ric wouldn't hesitate before he swooped in and with some legal maneuvering try to steal Molly away from you. I don't want you to worry about custody of your sisters' if that does happen, Kristina will already be with Sonny and Molly will be safe and secure with you as long as I appoint my husband the guardian of my daughter and then he'll have to fight a judge."

Sam nods as she sees her processing her words as she lays down next to her, "You still love Sonny though, don't you Alexis?"

Alexis can't deny her the truth, "I will always love Sonny but I realize that the love I have for him is not reciprocated and even though it hurts like hell, I have to accept that fact."

Sam squeezed her hand and spoke, "You don't deserve anything less than happiness for the rest of your life. You have been through too much for it to go any other way. I'll talk to Sonny about the girls and let him know that he doesn't need to worry."

Alexis sighed gratefully, for the first time she really felt that Sam was truly her child each time she hears her putting the needs of others before her own, "I know this may also be another imposition but I've given Sonny the go ahead to take the girls to his house and I just wanted you to go with them. I know that it would do Molly and Kristina some good if they knew that you were going to be by their side and the only thing that was missing from their life was me."

Sam nods emphatically but Alexis held up her hand, "I know that me marrying Sonny seems like one of the stupidest ideas I've ever had but I need to tell you a secret, a secret that I haven't shared with anyone and I'm going to trust you to keep it like that."

Sam leans forward and Alexis takes a deep breath realizing that she's about to divulge yet another one of her secrets to her daughter and let her know that she's important to me by giving Sam her trust, "If I die, my last wish was to be united with the one man who completed me. It may sound absurd but when he slipped the ring on my finger, I felt for the first time that this marriage was going to last, it was going to last and I was going to enjoy every minute of it even if it only lasted a couple of hours, or days."

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Sonny had been diligently checking his watch every couple of minutes as he realized that Sam was cutting in on his time. If she had only gotten here earlier he wouldn't be forced to split the precious few moments he had left with her daughter who couldn't have been bothered to be there in the first place with the woman he loved.

Sonny leaned forward to peer into the room and stops as he sees Alexis cradling Sam in her arms. He feels a jolt of pain as he witnesses the affection that is evident between the two women. Alexis had done it again; she had turned what would have been a tragic event into something where she gained back her whole family. He didn't know how it was possible to love her anymore than he already did since that fateful night when he conceived Kristina but it was the truth. He was more in love with her than ever.

He had been lost in his thoughts for moments when he realize that he was standing too close to the door and was about to be hit in the face for his voyeuristic act.

He looked as Sam walked out of the room and leaned against the wall as the sobs start to rack her body. He's tempted to take her in his arms and comfort her but he's afraid of what could happen. He had wanted to be the one to tell her that she was now in essence his stepdaughter as well as the mother of his deceased daughter.

He started towards her to put an arm on her shoulder in comfort when she jerks away from him with a look of cold anger in her eyes, "How did you do it Sonny? How did you convince my normally rational mother that marriage to you would ensure that she didn't lose Molly? What did you tell her?"

Sonny cringed as he felt the anger start to build in him but he held himself back, He knew she was just worried that Alexis wouldn't wake up so he was determined to not take her words in the manner in which she spoke them. She was obviously distraught over Alexis, "Look, I know you're worried about Alexis, we all are. But, that doesn't give you the right to talk to me this way. I married Alexis, it's done, there's nothing to discuss."

Sam smirked at him as she spoke, "So that's it? The great Sonny Corinthos has spoken and what we are all supposed to fall in line? Obey? I won't do any of those things, not when the lives of my sisters and my mother are at stake. You preyed on her worst fear which is that her children will be separated from each other and that Ric would take Molly far away, so tell me what do you promise my mother? Did you promise her that if you married her then Ric could never take Molly?"

Sonny starts to scowl as he listens to Sam's outburst, "Look Sam, that's enough with the attitude. Alexis asked me, she approached me and I agreed because she asked; there was no preying on anyone here."

Sam leaned forward and speaks with precision, "I know you told my mother something otherwise she wouldn't given into this farce, she is so much stronger than that. She would've figured something out in the long run but you couldn't wait for that, could you? No, you just wanted to get her when she was most vulnerable."

Sonny can feel the tick in his eye starting to explode as he stalks over to her and jerks her arm to his side, "Look McCall, you are Alexis's daughter so that is the only reason that I've given you this much leeway but if you don't stop with the insults, I'm going to forget Alexis is your mother and tell you the truth to your face. I love Alexis; I married her because I love her, even if she doesn't believe it. This marriage is the best thing for the both of us, I get the woman I want and a chance to makeup for all of my errors in the past and she gets the knowledge that her daughters will be taken care of so she can focus on beating this damn disease and starting her life by my side."

Sam ripped her arm out of his grasp as she pointed to the door and spat out, "Look, who do you think you're fooling Sonny? I was there when you told me that Alexis was just a passing fancy or a bad mistake is that how you classified your time with my mother? A bad mistake? This marriage is a bad mistake, and I want you to have it annulled as soon as Alexis is put under sedation."

* * *

She went off on Sonny! I know but since its in her misguided attempt to protect her mother and sisters, I can't hate her too much. 


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Damn, there's something about devastated Nancy/Alexis that always gets me. So umm, the only  
thing I have to say about the custody trial on Friday is you can see why they don't have good ratings, that  
****was the craziest piece of 'crap' I use the word 'crap' lightly for what was on television.**

**Chapter 9**

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Alexis felt like she was starting to drift off to sleep but was struggling to keep her eyes open. She had just asked Dr. Trent to locate Sonny for her because she wanted to see him before the medicine started to take effect. The door opened and her husband walked in. She couldn't help herself that each time, she was in his presence the only thought was how proud she was that she was finally with the one man who made her whole.

She tried to smile hoping to inject some humor into what could possibly be the last time they would see each other. She felt her eyes starting to get heavy and she held out her hand in a plea. She wanted to feel his hand squeezing hers once more before it was too late. He took her hand without hesitation and said, "So what is this I hear that you won't start to let the medication take effect until you saw me? I knew that you were a control freak Alexis but staving off the tranquilizers is a bit extreme don't you think?"

She feels her dimples start to show as she shakes her head and speaks softly, "So here I am, wondering what I should say to you. When I heard you tell me last night you loved me, I didn't believe you and I guess a part of me still doesn't believe you but I wanted you to know something before I went to sleep," Alexis pauses in her discourse to see how her words are affecting him but he's trying to hide his feelings behind a mask.

She had always hated how he had the ability to shut people out, it was a skill that she herself had perfected since childhood and one she didn't want to see on his face, "Listen Sonny, we've both made a lot of mistakes in life, mistakes that we can't change, mistakes that have shaped us for the future. Mistakes that we can never go back and erase, but there is one that you may classify as a mistake but I will always recall as the day that I made love to my soul mate, the night we conceived Kristina. Sonny, I should've told you the truth when I found out I was pregnant because even if you didn't love me, I loved you and that would've been enough but I was too frightened, I guess I'm still frightened. There has never been another man in my life, with the exception of Stefan who I let see the inner me. I'm friends with Jax, Ned and all the other men in my life superficially because I never let them get under the surface, not like I did with you."

She smiles as she starts to notice the tears starting to fall from his eyes, "Sonny this is not going to be a guilt trip just an unburdening of my heart. If I never wake up I want you to know that I did love you Sonny. I always loved you and I don't want you to forget that."

She felt anxious waiting to hear his thoughts on her confession and she wasn't left waiting as he stood up and reached for her face bringing his lips to hers as he kissed her breathless. Alexis tilted her head back and opened her mouth slightly as his tongue gained access, but she was not prepared for the surge of desire that ran through her bones at the fact that we were about to become intimate in the hospital room before she went into a coma to cure her pneumonia.

She was enjoying the kiss so thoroughly that she hadn't noticed that the door was open. She pulled back when someone cleared their throat, "Do you mind telling me what the hell this means Alexis?"  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
Sam was on a mission, a mission to protect her family. It was a mission she wasn't taking lightly ever since it had been bestowed upon her by her mother. She was to protect them at all costs and that included protecting her mother from her own heart and what its actions would bring.

She banged on the door to the penthouse where the woman who would be the catalyst to ensure that all of Sonny's scheming didn't bear fruits. The door flung open and without waiting for an answer she entered and immediately regretted her hasty action. She had come face to face with a scantily clad Carly lying on Jax's couch.

She ignored Jax's presence and spoke directly to Carly in clipped, short tones, "I need your help."

Carly scowled at the woman who had dared to interrupt her romantic rendezvous with her fiancée as she grimaced as she pulled her robe over her shoulders and wrapped them around her waist and tied and said, "What do you want Sam?"

Sam plopped down in the chair across from where Carly and Jax were sitting and started speaking, "I need your help with Sonny."

Sam noticed the scowl that crossed Jax's face at the mention of the man who was once again in the middle of his life with another woman that at had one time been Sonny's. He started to get up when Carly pulled him back to her side and said, "I don't have any secrets from you Jax whatever Sam needs to say, she can say in front of you too."

Sam raised an eyebrow at her declaration but decided if Carly set the rules of the game then she would follow them, "I need you to help me break up Sonny and Alexis like you did before."

Carly flinched back as she shook her head in question, "I didn't break up Sonny and Alexis before."

Sam shook her head and said, "Drop the innocent act Carly, I know it all. I know that you faked your death so that you could make Sonny pay for sleeping with my mother. I know that you embezzled money from the club so that you could pay her old law firm to take her back, I know every sordid detail you pulled trying to get my mother out of Sonny's life and I need your help again."

Carly looked at Jax who was sitting stoically next to her with a look of disbelief on his face. Carly reached for Jax when Sam cleared her throat and said, "Focus Carly, my mother's life at stake along with that of Kristina and Molly. What else did you do to ensure that they didn't get back together?"

Carly leaned against Jax who was still silent during the exchange and said, "Whatever I did to Sonny or Alexis is in the past. If they want to be happy together why don't you let them?"

Sam scowled at her and said, "Because Sonny never picked my mother like she picked him. She put away all of her family and friends from her side trying to maintain his friendship and she did it all out of love. A love that was never corresponded, I don't want her hurt anymore and that's all Sonny is capable of doing to the women in his life."

Carly bit her lip as she processed the words that Sam was speaking, "Listen, if they find comfort in each other's arms than I'm happy for them, you should be too. I won't get involved with this."

Sam leaned back as she crossed her arms and looked at her in a cold glance, "Not even if I threaten to tell Sonny all about your little escapade all those years ago? I'm sure he would be curious to realize that he could've been with Alexis all along if you hadn't interfered."

Jax opened his mouth for the first time since hearing the conversation and said, "Sam, I don't understand what it matters that Alexis and Sonny are friends again, if anything it's for the best. They can now have an amicable relationship where Kristina is concerned and let's face it with the disease she has she needs all of the friends she can get."

Sam nodded as she stood up and scowled, "Friends yes. Husband, no. Sonny convinced my mother to marry him and now he can destroy her at any time he chooses. I want the marriage annulled before it gets to that point."

Jax stood up as he mouth hung open in shock, he had been expecting a lot of things but it wasn't that, "Listen, I agree that Alexis shouldn't have married Sonny but maybe she wants security for her girls."

Carly piped up from behind him and said, "Alexis has to know that Sonny will protect the girls with his life, there's nothing he won't do for them. I don't know what the reason for the marriage was but I'm sure that Sonny will be happy with her. Back then, I didn't want to accept that another woman could've possibly taken my place in the life of Sonny but it happened and when we got back together we only self-destructed each other until lives were lost. Actual lives Sam, so if Sonny and Alexis can find a little bit of happiness in the midst of all of the tragedy who are we to deny them?"

Sam reached for the doorknob as she spoke, "Sonny has a history of hurting my mother and of not choosing my mother. She didn't deserve any of the treatment she received by his side. She's one of the most selfless women I've ever met and I don't want her to think that she doesn't have control of her life when she wakes up. Sonny is in control and I don't want this to backfire on her so I want your help to ensure that Sonny gets an annulment."

Carly sighed and said, "Leave them be Sam. Let them be happy, let your mom make her own mistakes without your interference."

Sam opened the door and turned around and met the eyes of Carly and Jax with a look of disgust, "You don't get it do you Carly? Maybe you've never had to live through what my mother did but she deserves someone so much better than what Sonny gave her and if they want to be friends that's fine but I don't want my mother married to that man. Not now, not ever."

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Epiphany stood in front of Alexis's hospital bed like an avenging guardian angel as she stared at her husband with an eyebrow raised, "The patient is supposed to be preparing for sedation and you are here trying to make out."

Alexis smiled softly as she noticed the blush that crossed his face and say, "We were just saying goodbye."

Epiphany smirked, "Can you try to say goodbye without your tongues?"

Alexis felt the blush coming on and nodded her head as she nods and Epiphany leaves the room. Alexis watched in fascination as Sonny leans against the bed and speaks softly, "Fight Alexis, fight with everything that's in you to come back to me and us. Fight until you can't fight anymore and then let me help you fight."

She felt the tears rise to her eyes at the conviction in his voice and she smiles softly, "Sonny I'm going to fight but I want you to try to get along with Sam while she's staying in the house. I know that with everything that she did with Ric she may not be on the top of your list for friends but she loves her sisters fiercely and that includes your daughter, they rely on her for support and love and I don't want them to ever be deprived of what they need."

Sonny is hiding something from her but she's unable to question as the door opens and her doctor enters. Dr. Trent stares at Sonny with a question in his voice, "Mr. Corinthos, I didn't expect to see you here. We are about to put Alexis under sedation, so if you don't mind."

Alexis jumps as she feels the slight squeeze on her hand and knows that Sonny is struggling for control, he hates to be given orders so she decides to speak in his place, "Dr. Trent, I guess I should formally introduce you. Dr. Trent, this is Sonny Corinthos."

Sonny smiled and she knows that he's itching to let the doctor know his place in her life, and she can't help but feel a thrill at this whether it was from pride or possessiveness, she didn't know and she wasn't going to question it, "My husband."

Dr. Trent is good because he doesn't even flinch with the acknowledgment that she was no longer Alexis Davis-Lansing but she had become Alexis Davis-Corinthos wife to one of the top mob men on the eastern seaboard. "Mr. Corinthos, in that case I guess you can stay."

Alexis had to bit her lip to stifle the smile that was threatening to bubble up from her lips and spoke, "Dr. Trent, I have also signed papers leaving the power of attorney for healthcare to my husband and daughter equally. They will need to be consulted on any and all treatments while I'm incapacitated."

Alexis stares anywhere but looking Sonny in the eye as she speaks to Dr. Trent because she knows that he hadn't expected to be given this level of trust so quickly but Alexis had learned something in the last couple of weeks since being diagnosed with cancer, she learned that if your time was short there was no time worrying about the petty things in your life, she had to focus on the people that she loved that were still by her side. Sonny squeezed her hand and she finally dared to look up at him and inhaled a sharp breath as she notices the look of intensity he's sending her way, "Sonny, I trust you."

Those are the only words that she allows her heart to speak as she meet Dr. Trent's eyes, "So when are you going to put me under?"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny couldn't feel his legs as he realizes that she trusts him with her life. After everything that they had been through together she trusts him with the most important part of her, her life. He didn't want to start openly weeping in front of her doctor so he steeled himself to just hold her hand as he awaited instructions. He had to hand it to the doctor, he was sure it's not everyday he encounters a woman who switched husband mid-cancer treatment and not only did she switch husbands she switched husbands for his brother. It was sordid and twisted and people who didn't know how long they had fought together against each other and denying their feelings will simply view their marriage as some other piece to this never-ending drama but to anyone who knows of the love that still exists between them will realize that it's about time.

He sat down on the stool next to her bed and turns to Dr. Trent as he listens to him explain the procedure of putting Alexis in a medically induced coma to rid her of the pneumonia so that she could start fighting the cancer. "How long will she need to be in a coma?"

Dr. Trent clears his throat as he reviews Alexis's chart and then speaks truthfully which Sonny had to admit he was grateful for, "There is no time length on how short or how long we will keep her in the coma, it will all depend on whether or not her body accepts or rejects the pneumonia treatment. If she responds favorably then she shouldn't be in the coma for more than a week at most but if during the treatment we notice the pneumonia getting worse than we will need to possibly keep her under for as long as two weeks if not a month."

Sonny flinches as he realize that Alexis hadn't been acting like a control freak for nothing, there was a possibility that she could never wake up and she was preparing herself and the girls for that possibility. He squeezed her hand to let her know that he trusts in her implicitly, "You'll beat this Alexis; you have too much to live for." To let her know the importance of the statement he leaned over and pressed a hard kiss to her lips.

She smiles at him softly as she guards her heart from him, he knew the love still existed, Sam had told him it still existed but the trust had been lost and to be honest after everything, he couldn't blame her.

At that moment Epiphany entered the room and injected the medication into her IV as she gripped his hand and he waited for her to fall asleep.

She looked into his eyes with a look of such faith, love and adoration that he feels that he won't ever be able to pay her back for all the times that she protected him while he hurt her. "It's going to be okay Alexis; everything is going to be just fine."

Sonny knows the he's uttering the same words that he had once told her when Kristina had been conceived, and even back then if he hadn't lived up to my promise he vows that he will now, "I promise Alexis, I will be by your side this time. But remember, you have to live up to your part of the bargain, nobody leaves."

She smiles at him one last time as her eyelids grow heavy and the hand that had been gripping on to his tightly went limp in his hand as she drifts off to sleep as he allowed the doctors to save his wife.

* * *

Thoughts Please. 


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Next installment, thoughts please!

**Chapter 10**  
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Sam stormed into Sonny's house and instantly changed her attitude as she came face to face with her sisters who were playing on the living room floor happily. Kristina looked up as her sister entered the room and grinned and ran over to her for a hug.

"Sam, Mommy told us that we were all going to live with Daddy when she wakes up. Isn't that cool? Do you want to share a room?"

Sam leaned down and picked up her sister and squeezed her to herself, "Why don't we talk about sharing rooms later and you tell me what you two are doing?"

Kristina struggled and stood up as she pulled her sister over to where she had setup a mini playpen for the two of them, "We were just playing Barbie's until Daddy comes home from the hospital. He wanted to hold Mommy's hand while she went to sleep, and then he said we could all make something in the kitchen. Do you think Daddy has popcorn?"

Sam smiled as she looked at her sister who was busy accommodating herself to her new surroundings and picked up her sister Molly who was giggling happily in her baby chair while her eyes never left her older sister. Sam put her on her hip as she thought over the events of this morning.

_Flashback _

Sam looked at Jason with tears in her eyes, "Jason, you knew? You knew that Carly had faked her death and you didn't tell Sonny? You don't know what that would've done to the relationship between my mother and Sonny? They could've been happy."

Jason flinched at the anger he heard in her voice but focused on his convictions, "Carly told me that Sonny had just had a fling with Alexis and he didn't feel anything for her. I even asked Sonny if he felt more than friendship for Alexis but he always wrote it off as a mistake he said he should've never gotten involved with her. Looking back on it now, I know he was just avoiding the issue, he loved Alexis and I think if they had, had a real chance they could've been happy together. I know Sonny would've at least. They really got each other. I had always been Sonny's right man but when I first came back, I always noticed that he was over at Alexis's, he asked for her opinions, he asked for her thoughts, he trusted her and when that was gone he started making mistakes. Stupid ones, ones that cost him a lot."

_Sam felt the tears start to well in her eyes, "My mother was right then? She could've destroyed Carly's relationship with Sonny if she chose to. I once said that she was a control-freak, but she had all of the control in the relationship but she let Sonny have what he said he wanted." _

_Jason looked at her in confusion, "What are you talking about Sam?" _

Sam scowled as she sipped from her water, "Alexis knew all along that Carly had faked her death but she kept quiet because Sonny said that he loved Carly. She didn't want to get into the middle of their relationship if she wasn't meant for him. If she had fought then Sonny would've learned the truth."

_Jason sighed and said, "I knew that Alexis had the connections to uncover Carly's scheme but I always thought that she hadn't bothered otherwise she would've blown her out of the water when she had the chance." _

Sam rolled her eyes as she reached for her purse when the phone started ringing. She checked the caller ID and then looked at Jason in question, "It's the hospital."

Jason shrugged and she flipped the phone open and spoke softly,"Hello?"

End of Flashback

Sam was being called and she looked down as her sister Kristina continued to pull on her leg trying to corner her attention. Sam looked down and said, "What's going on Kristina?"

Kristina pointed to Molly and said, "She's sleepy Sam. Are you going to put her to bed now?"  
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Sonny had walked out of the hospital room after an hour. He had stayed by Alexis's side even after the doctor assured him she was sleeping soundly. He had just found her again and she was now his and he didn't want to be parted from her, even while she was asleep. He couldn't focus on anything other than her whispered words of love as she fell asleep. The amount of trust that she had placed in him made him stumble out of the room on weak legs. As he fell against the door in exhaustion he had to prepare himself to go home and see the faces of Alexis's daughters, all three of them and see Alexis in each of their glances and not fight the urge to cry.

He had already steeled his emotions and started walking towards the elevators when his cell phone rang, "Corinthos."

"Sonny its Carly. I need to see you, it's important."

Sonny sighed in disbelief as he spoke into the phone, "Carly, can this wait? I'm exhausted and I just want to go home and see my girls."

Carly smirked from the other end of the phone and he could hear it transmitted through her voice, "Yea I heard about your impromptu marriage to Alexis and I guess congrats are in order. That's actually why I'm calling, it's about Sam. This can't wait; I'll be waiting for you at Jax's."

Sonny opened his mouth to ask for time when the dial tone rung in his ear and he knew that she had hung up the phone in his face. He shook his head in exasperation as he realizes that Carly wasn't going to let this go, she wanted to discuss his marriage to Alexis and she wanted to do it at Jax's house. This was going to be fun.

He exhaled a deep breath and pressed the down button on the elevator as he waited to go hear another list of complaints launched against him for marrying Alexis without anyone's knowledge.

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Sonny tapped his foot as he waited impatiently at Jax's door for Carly to arrive and explain to him what could have possibly been so important that she felt that she needed to take time away from him visiting with the girls. Carly opened the door with a flourish and stepped back and allowed him entry into the penthouse.

Jax was already sitting on the couch with a firm smirk fixed on his face, "Sit Corinthos."

Sonny refused to rise to the bait especially since Alexis still considered Candyboy a friend. He didn't know why but she considered him to be someone that she still trusted as a friend and a confidante. He looked back to see Carly fidgeting with her robe as she bit on her bottom lip. He sighed in exhaustion as he waited for the latest to be dumped into his lap.

Carly crossed across the room and sat next to Jax. It was almost as if she was expecting him to protect her from whatever came out of her mouth, "Sonny, Sam came by to see me today. She wanted me to help her breakup you and Alexis since I had done it successfully before."

Sonny outwardly flinched as he focused on words that Carly uttered, "Sam was here. Why would you care if I was with Alexis or not? And what did she mean about you have done it before?"

Jax squeezes her hand and Sonny realized that whatever Carly's about to confess will change his life and not necessarily for the better, "Sonny, I knew that you and Alexis slept together. I knew it so after I realized that I couldn't find comfort in Zander's arms I decided to make you pay. What I'm about to say will probably cause a rift in our relationship but you needed to know the truth, because Sam cares about Alexis. I truly believe that in her mind she thinks that all she is doing is protecting her mother and sisters."

Sonny scowled as he heard Carly's defense of Sam but he refuses to acknowledge the fact that she was sticking up for her, "What did you do Carly? What made Sam think you were a good candidate to turn to in keeping Alexis and me apart?"

Carly flinched at the anger in his tone but he refused to apologize, not when so many lives were at stake. All of which had become dear to him in such a short period of time. "Maybe because it had worked before, maybe because when I did it the last time, I got away with it and wasn't confronted with my actions until today."

He didn't understand but he was starting to get a sinking feeling in his stomach, one that led him to believe that their relationship will never be the same, "Carly, what did you do?"

Jax who had been uncharacteristically silent during the whole exchange cleared his throat and spoke for Carly who was afraid of his temper if her cowering behind Jax was any indication, "Carly faked her death Sonny. She saw you and Alexis having sex that night and plotted her death to make you pay and then once she returned she embezzled money from the club to try to get Alexis's old law firm to take her back. She also frequently, from what she has just confessed tried to run Alexis out of town, out of your life and out of her way."

As he listened to Jax calmly explain Carly's actions, Sonny started to feel the rage threatening to launch him out of the chair and wrap his arms around her neck as he spat out, "Why Carly? Why did you go through all of this?"

Carly flinched back from the tone in his voice and spoke softly, "Alexis was everything that I never was in your life. I always complained that she had your trust, something I was never privy to, and she got your time and affection. You never gave me the consideration that you gave her, you did it all for her and I knew when I saw that you two had slept together if I didn't do something drastic to win you back, then all was lost so I staged my death."

Sonny jumped to his feet and was ready to grab her when Jax stands up and stares him in the eye, "Look Corinthos, the only reason that she's telling you all of this is because she's apologetic for her actions. She didn't even have to tell you but when Sam came here she thought the best thing to do was to tell you the truth. So this is the truth, now deal with it."

Sonny was so furious that he considered sending a punch Jax's way when he closed his eyes and exhale deep, cleansing breaths and stepped back. He backed up until he felt the end of the chair shape his legs as he fell back into the chair, "How did Sam find out? This happened almost 5 years ago and you were never repentant enough to come forward and tell me the truth so why now?"

Carly cleared her throat, "I don't know if I would've ever told you but, Sam knew. At first, I thought Jason had confessed….,"

She let her voice trail off as she realized what she just spoke and Sonny picked up on it immediately, "Jason? Jason knew?"

Carly nodded as she looked down, "He helped keep it a secret when you asked him to search into my whereabouts. I begged, cried and pleaded with him to keep the secret from you and he agreed."

Sonny starts to feel sick to his stomach with the betrayal that he was slowly uncovering, "Jason knew and you knew but how did Sam know if you didn't tell her?"

Jax cleared his throat and spoke and dealt Sonny another blow with his words, "Alexis knew. She never trusted Carly and she didn't trust her story so she had the investigator find out her whereabouts. She was going to tell you when you came to her and told her that you never stopped loving Carly, so she stepped back and let the man that she loved have what he wanted, Carly."

Carly wouldn't stare him in the eyes as Jax spoke the words that had left him cold inside. Alexis had known and had once again shown him the true meaning of the word love. She was amazing. He stood up as Jax was eyeing him warily and made his way over to the door.

Sonny exhaled a deep breath as his hand hovered over the doorknob, he turned back to her and said, "Don't come within fifty feet of me for the next month otherwise I might be tempted to hit you. I have suffered abuses at the hands of men and women my whole life but what you did Carly, what you and my best friend Jason did doesn't have a name. I can't believe that the people who claimed to love me the most would treat me like this."

As he opened the door Carly stood up and said, "Fine Sonny, you can go ahead and play the innocent victim in all of this but the only, the only reason that Jason kept quiet was because he asked you for your feelings about Alexis and you told him that she was a mistake. If she was such a mistake, what does it matter 5 years later what we did? You ask yourself Sonny, who was in denial?"  
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Sonny had Max drive him around for hours with no idea of a destination. He didn't know how he was going to be able to process everything that had just been thrown at him. He had been betrayed by the people closest to him and the woman that he loved and hurt had sacrificed everything because he foolishly told her he wanted Carly. He told her that he never stopped loving Carly and she took that to mean that even if Carly had faked her death that she would never be as important to him as Carly was. He was confused, he didn't know whether to cry in frustration or rage at Jason and Carly in anger.

He looked up when he noticed that the car had arrived at the warehouse. Sonny looked to Max who shrugged and let him out of the car. He walked into his office and closed the door behind him his hand hovering over the doorknob, hesitant to be alone with his disturbing thoughts. His thoughts were going to get him or someone else killed. He had been staring at the clock for thirty minutes when the door opened and Jason walked in.

He leaned against the shut door and spoke, "You know."

Sonny leaned back in his chair and met his response with a glare. Jason walked forward and said, "You know what transpired 5 years ago and you're upset. I can understand that but it's in the past Sonny, let it go."

He jumped up and was grateful that Jason was a male because it doesn't stop him from pounding on him if he feels like it, "Let it go? Let it go! Carly put me, her mother and her son through hell all because she was upset that Alexis and I made love. Do you understand how crazy that is?"

Jason smirked and said, "Do you know this is the first time that you ever admitted that when you and Alexis had sex, it was making love? Each time I asked you, you told me it was a mistake; it was an error in judgment one thing that you wished you could erase. You never told me that it was anything other than a mistake to you and now because you learned the truth you want to romanticize and make it out to seem like you had made love with her all those years ago."

Sonny starts to seethe because in the back of his mind Jason's making sense, he didn't want to face his culpability in the situation, "I loved her Jason. I loved her and I could've been with her if it wasn't for…"

Jason cut him off as he spoke, "Don't try to blame this on Carly, Sonny. What she did was wrong, there's no excuse for it, I agree but if for one moment I actually thought that you loved Alexis I would've been the first to tell you. You hid your feelings for her so well that I didn't know if Carly was telling the truth or not. She should've meant more to you than a quick lay but that's never how you said it, you let everyone believe that she was a mistake, hell she learned to believe it and now you know. She knew and she sacrificed her happiness to let you believe that Carly had come back from the dead, why are you so angry about this?"

Sonny fell back against his desk as he spoke through short, clipped tones, "I loved her, and I didn't think I was good enough for her. I had always felt like an inferior standing next to her, it was one thing that this inferior man became her friend but it was quite another that me being this inferior could become her lover and something significant in her life. I took my place and was just her friend for so long until that night when I became her lover and I promised her that everything was going to be okay. I finally for the first time in our relationship felt like her equal and then the morning came and I realized that my inferiority was coming to bite me in the ass, because Carly was missing. I was always superior alongside Carly but not Alexis and when I realized that Carly was missing and that she had probably seen us together the inferiority complex that I always felt came back in full force, if I had just stayed in my place Michael wouldn't have lost his mother and I would've still had my friend. When Carly came prancing into her own funeral I felt like God was setting things right with the world, I had strove for something that was out of my reach and had paid the penalty but I had another chance to make things right. I was going to accept that my life was going to be alongside Carly and no one else. Now, now I found out that my assumptions were just that assumptions and the woman that I loved, that I hurt paid the price for my stupidity. I don't know how to accept this, I can't just pretend that everything's okay."

Jason sat down in front of him and said, "I'm sorry for what it's worth Sonny. I know that you probably don't take my apology for anything other than me speaking but I needed you to know that it was never my intention to hurt you or Alexis. I was trying to protect Michael's family all of it."

Sonny flinches and closes his eyes, he wasn't ready to acknowledge Jason's words for truth so he nodded and didn't move until he heard the door close behind him letting Sonny know that he left.

He called Max into the room and said, "Come on there's somewhere I have to be."**  
**

* * *

Dude, my poor Sonny, but I needed to whoop up on him while Alexis is sleeping so when she awakens, her prince is perfect for her  
Also, I'm not sure if Sonny found out all this info before or not because I stopped watching in 2002 so if I'm redundant, I apologize. 


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Next update, meanwhile I'm working on finishing this story out so I can work on another  
one that's been wracking around in my brain. It's a story with a Craze pairing that will end in Sexis.  
I think I want Craig to push Sonny to realize what he's missing without our Lexie.

* * *

**Chapter 11  
**

He had been hovering outside her door for the past thirty minutes, only allowing himself the pleasure or pain to look in at her through the window to see her sleeping away soundly with no idea of the inner turmoil he was currently facing. Each time, he had his hand on the doorknob something stopped him. Should I? Dare I? Did I have the right to?

Every time he confronted himself with that question, his hand fell away from the doorknob and he stepped back in shame. He didn't have the right to impose on her to burden her once again with his shortcomings, she had been the brunt of his shortcomings for the marjoity of their relationship.

"Sonny?"

He looked up at the sound of his name being called and turned around and met the concerned eyes of his on-again, off-again therapist, Lainey Winters. "Lainey, how are you?"

Lainey looked into his eyes curiously and said, "I think the question better posed would be how you are? I've been watching you for the last five minutes, are you scared to go into Alexis's room?"

He pulled back as he met her eyes and knew that he needed to get these feelings of worthlessness off his chest and the only way he could do that would be to talk to someone. He knew he wasn't in the right frame of mind to talk to anyone who he at one time considered his friends because they had all betrayed him so he was going to have to trust her, "Scared? Terrified is more like it. I found out that I don't deserve her and again I feel unworthy."

Lainey sighed and motioned for him to take a seat outside his wife's room and for once he was grateful that someone else was taking the lead. It made breathing that much easier to not be responsible after what he realized. After allowing her to lead the way and carry them to a secluded area she started in on the questions, "Sonny, why are you feeling inadequate? Just this morning you couldn't have been happier that she was your wife and now you're telling me you feel inadequate, what happened between now and then to make you feel like that?"

Sonny rubbed his hands over his face as he tried to put a voice to the feelings that had been raging inside of him ever since he had left Carly and Jax. He was in turmoil and he needed help so he opened his mouth as the words fell from his lips, "Carly faked her death five years ago after she watched Alexis and I make love. She pretended to die in a car accident and then staged her re-appearance at her funeral to punish me and to a greater extent Alexis for daring to be happy together. She won too because I fell hook, line and sinker for that act, she even got my best friend in on it and they all conspired to keep the truth away from me."

Lainey opened her mouth in shock and he knew that she was just as shocked as he had been when he learned the truth. He decided to drop the last bombshell on her, "The worst part is that Alexis knew. She knew but when I told her that I still loved Carly she kept the knowledge of Carly's culpability to herself because she thought that's what I would've wanted. She always protected me and loved me while all I did was hurt her. So tell me, how do I open that door and go in and ask for forgiveness for making the worst mistake of my life?"  
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Sonny sighed in happiness as he crossed the threshold into his home. His talk with Lainey had been surprisingly helpful; she had suggested that he not live in the mistakes of the past but instead focus on the brightness of his future with his wife. He had been momentarily blinded by the anger that still threatened to choke him when he thought of his ex-wife and best friend betraying him but there was something comforting about realizing that he was now in the best position to make up for all of those mistakes. He was married to Alexis, she and Molly were living under his roof. He had all the time in the world to make up for the errors on his part. He stopped and gazed in wonder as he saw Kristina playing happily on the floor with her sister Molly. Her face lit up when she saw him as she ran over and threw herself into his arms begging to be picked up with a smile, "Daddy, I've been waiting for you forever. Sam said you would be back but that was hours ago."

Sonny squeezed her to his side grateful for this small piece of Alexis that was still in his arms. She was the living, breathing version of what the love between him and Alexis could create and he for one thought there was nothing better. He even smiled as he looked at Molly who was watching him curiously from her car seat with a smile. Although she may have been fathered by his brother, he still loved her for who her mother was and who she would raise her to be, another strong woman who would fight for herself and for those she loved. He was distracted to the point that he hadn't recognized that Krstina was pulling on his sleeve trying to garner his attention, he looked down as she shook her head at him and pointed towards her sister with a smile, "See Daddy, even Molly is happy to see you."

He nodded in agreement with his child as he stood up and walked over to where Molly was currently located and picked her up in his arms and settled her on his hip. His daughter was not one to be left behind and started to tug on his pant leg for attention, he bent down and lifted her to his side as he stepped back until he felt the back of the couch touch his legs as he sat down easily with Alexis's daughters cradled in his arms. He turned to Kristina and decided that he would try to get her mind off of the events of today, "Mommy is sleeping but since I'm here and you're probably both hungry, what do you say to making dinner together?"

Kristina started to clap her hands happily excited at the prospect of her father's cooking and said, "Cool Daddy, do you have any popcorn?"

Sonny felt a smile crease his lips as he got more proof of how alike Alexis, Kristina truly is and say, "Sure sweetheart, where's your big sister Sam?"

He was prevented from hearing the answer to that question when Sam cams down the stairs dressed in jeans and a t-shirt with a smirk fixed firmly on her face. Upon seeing his face she grimaced and started forward only to have Kristina smile at her and said, "Sam, Daddy going to make us popcorn for dinner."

Sam glared at him but he refused to rise to the bait. She was Alexis's daughter, her eldest daughter and even though it still made him cringe, at one time she had actually been the mother of his child so she deserved respect even if she wasn't offering it. He would control his temper in front of her, for Alexis and for her daughters. He would be true to the promse that he had made to Alexis and would get along with Sam even if she openly treated him with disdain for the moment.

He smiled at her trying to break the ice and hopefully the tension that had suddenly fallen over the room as he asked, "Would you like to join us for dinner Sam?"

Sam sat herself on the couch as she listened to Sonny spout off what seemed to be harmless invitation to join him and her sisters for dinner but she knew better. She started playing with Molly's fingers who was grinning at her as she was trying to swat at Sam's hands. She looked up into the hopeful eyes of her ssisters and knew that even if she didn't agree with Sonny's actions of late, she was her sister's father as well as the man that her mother married and for their sake she would at least get along with Sonny in public. She swallowed down her anger as she met his eyes with what she hoped was a apologetic gaze as she said, "Thanks for the offer Sonny but I have something I need to take care of."

Viola chose that moment to enter the living room and Sonny smiled at the entrance of the nanny who had happily accompanied him to his house. He asked Viola for assistance in taking the girls into the kitchen and preparing them for dinner so he could speak a moment alone with Sam. After he was assured that the girls and Viola were out of earshot he took a deep breath and prepared himself to face Sam.

He sighed before he turned to her and said, "I spoke to Carly and Jax."

Sam crossed her arms and she stared at Sonny defiantly and said, "And?"

He closed his eyes trying to regain his sense of composure before he followed through on the overwhelming urge to haul off and slap the smirk off Sam's face. Yes, she was Alexis's daughter and for that reason alone, he had to protect her. But, he didn't have to put up with her attitude, "And? And they told me that you asked Carly for help in breaking up your mother and I she refused and you walked out furious because they refuse to help. Do you mind telling me what all of this is about anyway Sam? I know that you were upset that you hadn't been the type of daughter that Alexis can be proud of but to try to break us up is ridiculous and wrong."

Sam glared as she grew indignant at him for daring to bring her errors to light, "My mother is in the hospital fighting cancer and the last thing she wanted in this world was to be married to you and for some ungodly reason she actually decided to ask you and I don't understand why. She actually believes that you know how to put her wishes in front of your own but I'm not fooled, you would've never allowed Ric to raise Molly and Kristina if she asked, just like I know you are not going to allow me to raise my sister's together."

Sonny flinched away at the anger in her tone but came back all the same with a bite in his, "I never told you that you couldn't raise Kristina and Molly together. I would actually prefer it."

Sam raised an eyebrow at him in disbelief, "If that's the case, then you wouldn't mind if I found a place for my sisters' and I to live. We can't live here, no I rephrase that we won't live here."

He shook his head in negation, she wasn't being reasonable. She couldn't possibly expect him to allow her the right to move his daughters out of his home, "No, you can all live here and we can…."

Sam cut him off as she stood up with her hand on her hips and started gesturing wildly, his sign that she was out of control, "We can raise all of the girls together like one big happy family? No Sonny, you're delusional and that's the reason that I'm going to have this marriage to my mother annulled, you'll only look out for your best interests and not my sisters' which is what my mother wanted."

As she stormed off, Sonny vowed to deal with her attitude another day, for now his priority was ensuring his new house guests were settled in and happy.

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Cruz had been getting off his night-shift when Sam McCall aka DA Davis's daughter entered the station with a foul mood and with her eyes zeroing in on him he didn't have a hope of her foul mood getting any better.

"Cruz, can I speak to you a moment?" Cruz looked at the beautiful, young woman in front of him. He would hate to admit it to anyone but he always had a crush on the personality of DA Davis. There was something about a woman who was able to hold her own with even the most dangerous of criminals without blinking an eye that made him admire her. And then the best part of it was that she was nice, she wasn't haughty or rude. It was those traits that he hoped one day to see in her daughter.

Sam smiled at the detective in front of her, the one she could always swear had a crush on her mother but refused to admit it for fear that he would be rejected. Right now, she would even settle for him as a potential partner for her mother, anything other than Sonny Corinthos. "Hey Det. Rodriguez, can I talk to you for a moment?"

Cruz reached for his coat with a nod and said, "Sure, how's your mom doing? I went to the hospital but they had her in isolation and I didn't know who to ask for more information so…."

Sam cleared her throat and said, "Don't worry; my mother is currently doing fine. The doctors have induced a coma to try to get rid of the pneumonia before they undertook the task of fighting the cancer."

Cruz nodded as he held the door open as they stepped out into the crisp, cool Port Charles night air. "So Sam, how can I help you?"

Sam cleared her throat and motioned to a bench outside the PCPD and said, "You know that my mother used to be married to Ric Lansing right?"

Cruz was good, he barely even flinched at the news that Alexis was no longer married to the slime bag Lansing, "No I hadn't heard but I guess congrats are in order, your mother always deserved someone better than him."

Sam nodded as she exhaled and looked out into the night, "She does deserve better which is why I need your help. My mom remarried before she went into a coma."

Cruz leaned back in shock, "She remarried someone. That was quick; who did she marry if I may ask?"

Sam grimaced and said, "Sonny Corinthos. And before you ask don't ask why. I only know that my mom thought it was best in light of Ric's latest actions, she wanted to protect her girls but I think that she was under the mistaken impression that Sonny is better for my sisters than anyone else and so I need your help into finding a better candidate for my mother."

Cruz stood up as he crossed his arms in front of him and looked at Sam with a face full of disbelief, "You want me to what? She married Corinthos, obviously under the influence of drugs and you want me to what? Play matchmaker and find her another husband?"

Sam stood up and sighed in exasperation, "I know, I know it seems like I'm going out on a limb but I have to make my mother see that she made a wrong choice in marrying Sonny and I have to make Sonny see that Alexis doesn't need him. I don't know what to do."

Cruz pulled the sobbing woman into his arms as he cradled her through her outburst, "Hey, calm down. Why don't you and I go see Sonny and see if we can't straighten this whole thing out?"

Sam nodded from her position on his chest as they turned to confront Sonny Corinthos at his home.  
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"More popcorn Daddy." Sonny smiled at his firstborn and slid the bowl across to his daughter who started munching down happily while Molly rested on his hip while he oversaw the cooking of dinner. He had decided a simple; spaghetti dinner would suffice for their first night together as a family.

Kristina was content to observe everything going on around her while Molly was enthralled with the new man who was quickly becoming the center of her world. He tasted the sauce and then made a face which made Molly giggle as he helped Kristina set the table.

Kristina reached for a glass out of the cupboard and then turned to her father in question, "Daddy, since we live here now can I write my name on my cup? That way I won't forget which one is mine."

Sonny smiled at the simple joy she got from realizing that we were going to be a family, together forever permanently, "Of course you can and while you're at it, pick one out for Molly too."

Pleased that she had been given a task that she was excited about, she ran off to find the glasses that would mark the beginning of her stay in her father's home. Molly leaned her head on his shoulder as she started to snooze off and Sonny turned to Viola in question, "Does Molly always go to sleep this early?"

Viola smiled and said, "Yea, she always waited for either Alexis or Mr. Lansing to return home before she would take her nap right before dinner. She would then wake up at about 9 wanting dinner which worked out really well because her mother was always still usually up and they would spend quality time together."

He smiled at Viola grateful that she gave him an explanation of how Molly was going to adjust to the changes in her schedule and turned to Kristina with a smile, "So did you find your cups?"

Kristina proudly displayed the two orange and pink cups that she was already starting to decorate with her markers for her and her sister's cups. She stopped mid stroke and turned to him in question, "Does Sam need a cup too Daddy?"

Sonny flinched at the mention of Alexis's older daughter who in a few words had already declared war on him and who he knew he would need patience with and said, "Sure make a cup for your older sister too."  
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"No Kristina, leave that alone we need to finish up our dinner." Sonny issued the command as he watched his daughter fidgeting with her dolls and juggled Molly around as she snuggled into his chest trying to find a comfortable position to finish out her nap.

Kristina pouted at him from across the table and he feels a smile crease his lips as her dimples meet his own in a match for cutest dimples and he let his fall as she wins hand down, "Daddy, I was just playing with them."

He already senses that in years to come he and Alexis are going to be bombarded with suitors for their daughter and he could already tell it was going to be a hard fight, "Okay Kristina, finish your dinner."

Kristina started to finish the rest of her dinner when she looked up as if she just noticed that someone was missing, "Where's Sam daddy?"

He opened his mouth to tell her that he didn't know the answer to that question when Sam came walking into the living room with Detective Cruz Rodriguez hot on her trail. As they both stop in front of the kitchen table, he's wary of whatever Sam is about to say. During the last couple of hours, he's had to fight back his instincts to go after her but he restrained himself as his daughter jumps up in glee and attaches herself to the newcomer's legs.

"Cruz, there you are. I thought you forgot about me!"

He and Sam both turned to Kristina and Cruz in question who were busy smiling at each other as Cruz picked her up and hugged her gently, "Do you think I could forget about my girlfriend? Of course not, I just asked your sister if she could take me to where you were because I missed you too much."

Kristina smiled and looked at her father with a grin as she introduced him, "Daddy, this is my boyfriend Cruz."

Sonny gasped in shock as Sam giggled from beside her and he decided to play along even though he wasn't pleased with this sudden turn of events, "I didn't know you had a boyfriend Kristina."

Kristina squeezed her arms around Cruz's neck and said, "When Mommy used to take me to work with her, Cruz was always nice and made me laugh. He even gave me candy but one day a really mean lady was trying to hurt Cruz's feelings so I told her to leave him alone because he was my boyfriend and Mommy was shocked but I told her it was okay cuz it was only pretend."

Sonny could feel the laugh bubble up from his lips as Kristina launched into her relationship with the detective sounding so much like her mother that he almost forgot who was talking to and almost uttered the command to breathe. Cruz met the smile he was still wearing with an inquisitive glance as he put Kristina down and said, "Can we speak to you alone Mr. Corinthos?"

Sonny exhaled a breathe as he called for Viola who came running and started to take Kristina out of the room, but as she reached for Molly he sent her off with a wave of his hand. He didn't want Molly taken from him, not just yet; while they were still bonding even if she was only asleep.

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Sam stared at Cruz in shock as he seamlessly took over the conversation with Sonny. She was grateful for his presence as she watched him sit across from Sonny Corinthos and meet him eye to eye, "Look Mr. Corinthos, I don't think that the best environment for your daughter and her sister is with you at the moment. Sam would be more than willing to find a residence and take over care of her sisters."

Sonny grimaced as he looked at Sam, "Sam, what are you trying to do? Why did you involve the Detective in the middle of our family fight?"

Sam leaned back wary of his rage and stared Sonny down as she spoke, "My sisters' lives are at stake and there's no one I wouldn't turn to for them. Sonny, my mother wanted me to take over care for them and I'm trying to make sure that her wish is carried out and I can't do that living in your house."

Sonny leaned back and turned to Cruz and spoke, "I married Alexis Davis hours before she was put into a coma by doctors. She left Medical Power of Attorney to her daughter, Sam and me, which also included her affairs which include her children and where they would live. My daughters are under this roof and they will remain there for the rest of their days, and once their mother is cleared to come home she will join us. Now, Sam is free to live here and be by her mother and sisters side but that doesn't mean I will allow her to run her rules through my house."

Sam flinched as she spoke, "My mother wasn't in full control of her faculties when she married you. She would've never married you unless you coerced her, she was afraid for us for all of us and you preyed upon her fear and made her your wife just so you can have custody of Kristina in case something happens to her. I can't believe you would stoop so low as to use her illness like this."

Cruz looked over at Sam and her words in shock, he knew that she wasn't pleased that Alexis had married Sonny but he didn't think that she was so adamant about her place in his life. "Sam, tell me does this sudden outpouring of concern for Alexis have anything to do with the fact that you were screwing her husband on the floor of their living room and she saw the two of you? Are you feeling guilty for your own lack of morals and are trying to make up for it by running crazy over my house?"

Sam cringed in disgust and looked at Cruz who was staring at Sonny as a monster as she spoke, "How dare you bring that up? What the hell does my mistake have to do with my mother? I'm looking out for her wellbeing and her wellbeing doesn't include you, you didn't know how to fight for her back then when she needed you and you can't do her any good now."

Cruz put a calming hand on her shoulder and spoke, "Sonny, would it be possible for Sam and I to share a bedroom together?"

Sam looked at Cruz in question and Sonny was grateful that he was able to school his face in an effort to know what was going on, "Of course. Why may I ask are you staying Det. Rodriguez?"

Cruz stood up and pulled Sam to her feet as he turned to Sonny and said, "She's my fiancée. Where she goes, I go."

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Sam turned to Cruz after the door to the guestroom shut and launched into a fury, "What the hell did you think you were doing telling Sonny that we were engaged?"

Cruz exhaled a sigh as he sat down on the edge of the bed and reached for his shoes, "Look Sam, I didn't know what else you expected me to do. Sonny is within his rights to keep both of your sisters under his roof and unless we can prove that he's doing wrongdoing then you have no legal right to remove them from this home. Now, if during the time that you and I live here he conducts any illegal business, anything that puts the lives of your sisters' in danger than you can go to judge and have a case to fight for custody."

Sam sighed as she leaned against the door, "Why did you tell Sonny that we were engaged? I mean even if you wanted to prove that Sonny was a threat to my sisters', you didn't have to tell Sonny we are engaged. He's going to tell Jason and that's going to cause another fight and then…."

Cruz leaned back on the bed and looked at her, "Listen you will need someone to corroborate your story when and if it comes in front of a judge that your sisters are in danger or being mistreated. You can't really serve as a witness because you are too close to the case and my title and job position will look good. Not to mention, that I will have introduced myself as your fiancée this stakes a claim as being a father figure in your sisters' life if the time should arise."

Sam scowled as she crossed her arms and started pacing, "I hate it, because it makes sense. But, won't this make you look bad to my mother?"

Cruz looked at her in confusion, "Your mother? She's in a coma right?"

Sam smirked, "Yea she's in a coma, but she still can wake up and then you can't pursue her…."

Cruz chuckled and interrupted her spiel, "Look, I admire your mother. She's a classy, brilliant, savvy attorney who I've had the pleasure of working with. She has ties to the mob because of who her daughter's father is and her eldest daughter is the girlfriend of the mob man's enforcer but admiration is all I feel for DA Davis, well DA Davis-Corinthos."

Sam pulled out the chair as she looked at her watch, "My mom loves me you know?"

Cruz nodded as he leaned forward, "Yea I know. Do you love her?"

Sam sighed as the tears started rolling down her cheeks, "Yea, I'm just starting to know how much."

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Sonny looked up as Jason came into the room and he motioned for him to take a chair. He leaned forward and exhaled in disgust, "Sam is playing games and I don't like it."

Jason leaned against the edge of the desk and said, "Playing games? That doesn't sound like Sam; I know that she's worried about her sisters but playing games?"

Sonny looked up and said, "She moved Cruz into a room upstairs under the pretense of he's her fiancée and wherever she goes he goes. They believe that I'm going to allow Sam to take custody of Kristina and Molly."

Jason sighed as he sat down and said, "Cruz is here. Are they together?"

Sonny looked at his friend and felt the stirrings of sympathy, he didn't know if Sam was serious about Cruz or persistent in her desire to remove her sisters from his care but either way he wasn't going to let her win, "I don't think so. I think she was as surprised as I was when he announced their engagement. Can you talk to her Jason? I don't know how long I can put up with her hostile attitude. Kristina and Molly are Alexis's daughters; she wanted them to be with me even if only for a little while."

Jason looked at his friend and said, "Yes but Sam's worried that you took advantage of her mother's fragile state to prey upon her affection for you."

Sonny leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes trying to gain control of his anger, "What do you want me to say Jason? Alexis asked me to marry her and after everything I won't deny to you that I love her. I didn't know how to appreciate what she was giving me back then but I can now. I want to be with her and I don't want to be at odds with her daughter over it."

Jason shook his head and said, "So what? Do you want me to talk to her or what?"

Sonny checked his watch and said, "No, I'll handle this but I guess I'm just worried that she's not going to give up this fight."

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**Three in the Morning**

The sound of a baby crying jolted Sonny out of bed in shock. It had been so long since Morgan needed to cry that he had been momentarily disorientated at the sound. Pulling on his pajama bottoms he rushed out of the bedroom and into the makeshift nursery he had created for Molly.

She stopped crying as her eyes met his with a look of wonder, "Hey baby girl. What's wrong?" He leaned down and picked up the baby who snuggled on his chest as he walked over to the chair in the nursery and sat down.

He started to pat her back and it wasn't long before she let out a burp and was falling back asleep when the door creaked open and Sam walked in rubbing her eyes. She stopped when she saw him in the chair with her sister cradled in his arms.

Sam leaned against the crib with her arms crossed, "Sonny, I was coming you didn't have to get up."

Sonny met her gaze with a tolerant one, "Sam, I don't know where you get this idea that I'm out to hurt Alexis. It's the last thing I want, if anything she's the one with the power to break me. After all, I put her through; the last thing I want is to hurt her. I just want to love her."

Sam leaned against the door as she watched the man who was currently rocking her baby sister to sleep and felt a stirring of remorse as she planned to take her sisters' away from this man, "Sonny, I know that you believe that the best thing for my sisters is to be here with you but you weren't at the hospital. You didn't hold my mom's hand as she finally told me why she didn't want me in Jason's life. God, the way that you and I yelled at her to butt out, I never got it. I was thinking the only thing she knew about how to be was a control-freak but she was genuinely concerned for our wellbeing."

Sonny flinched as he too remembered the words that had fallen from his lips not too long ago, "You know when I told her that she looked at me and for a split second, I knew Sam. I knew. I knew what it was to drown in her eyes because I was drowning, I saw our love the way she had seen it for the past five years with the power to destroy, to hurt and to kill and I felt horrible. I didn't want to admit that I saw the truth in her eyes and it almost killed me with its potency."

Sonny stood up and placed Molly back in the crib who momentarily turned towards the warmth that had been her pillow previously but then sucked on her bottom lip for comfort and fell asleep. He escorted Sam out of the room and said, "Sam we can fight. You can bring Cruz to live here, you can bring anyone to live here but I want the girls with me. Not just Kristina if that's what you're thinking, I want Kristina and Molly."

Sam flinched, "My sisters' safety is non-negotiable. I think Alexis believes that she's death bound which may be the only reason she married you. I do not doubt my mother loves you by any means; I just doubt if she thought that she would be alive to enjoy it. She wouldn't want this if she was in her right mind, think about _that_ Sonny."

* * *

Next chapter, I can't remember but I think we get Alexis back into the story and Sam deals with the fallout of her actions. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

A/N: I hate at times, I've been trying to upload these chapters for days so  
my apologies!

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Next Morning

Sam came down the stairs after having a toss and turn fight with the pillow as sleep wouldn't come. She had hoped that her conversation with Sonny last night had gotten through to him. There was something about the look in his eyes when she had explained that she didn't think her mother would've married Sonny if she thought she would live that had touched him and she just hoped it was in a good way.

As she hit the last step she looked into Cruz's eye who was putting a bib on Kristina while Molly sat happily on his hip. She walked over and reached for her sister who launched happily into her arms. She smiled as she sat down and kissed her sister good morning, "Morning sweetheart. What's for breakfast?"

Kristina beamed as she stared at Cruz and said, "Cruz woke up early and fix ham, eggs & cheese and toast. He also made cimmaomon rolls."

Sam laughed as she heard her sister draw out the word, "Cinnamon Kristina. Cinnamon. So it seems like Cruz has taken care of you this morning while I was getting some sleep."

Kristina nodded in agreement as Cruz sat down at the table next to her and reached for Molly and helped to start feed her. Sam had been happily eating her breakfast when she realized that something was out of place. She was happy and it was without Jason. She was in Sonny's house and Sonny wasn't there.

She stopped mid-bite vowing to review the first realization later in private but voicing the second, "Cruz, have you seen Sonny this morning?"

Cruz shook his head as Kristina piped up, "Daddy was gone early this morning. He kissed me good-morning and said that he would be back soon."

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Sonny sat next to Alexis's bed and stroked her hair while watching her inhale and exhale with every breath that the machine performed for her. He had been transfixed by the sight of her; he had wanted to run over and cradle her in his arms and let the sounds in the back of his head of Sam telling him that Alexis didn't think she would live and that's why she had married him. It was as if she had married him only to say goodbye, something he wouldn't accept.

He cradled her hand in his own as he felt the tears well up in his eyes and he left them fall unchecked, "Alexis, I need you. Earlier this morning Sam told me that maybe you married me because you thought you were dying and not because you think we are going to have a life together. I know, I know that I've hurt you in the past, I just know that if I can't go on without your dimples meeting mine or your smile as we share a private joke, I'll never be the same."

He paused as he watched the rise and fall of her chest, he became so entranced by the sight that he lost track of time and it wasn't until the door opened that he noticed that he was no longer alone in the room.

Epiphany walked up to the bed and checked Alexis's vital signs appearing to ignore him for the most part which at the moment he was grateful for. He didn't want to be forced to talk about where his mind and heart lay after the talk with Alexis's daughter last night. He was jolted out of his thoughts as Epiphany turned to him, "I hear congratulations are in order Mr. Corinthos, Alexis is lucky to have you by her side."

Sonny looked up as he realized that she had addressed him and was awaiting an response, he nodded even though he didn't know what he was agreeing to. Epiphany smiled as she watched the man in front of her nod in acceptance and brush off her compliment as his whole being was focused on the woman asleep in the bed, "You can ask Dr. Trent about her progress if you're worried about her since you seem so focused on her. I wouldn't worry though because she's just sleeping and there is no harm in that."

Sonny nodded as he processed her last words that had come out of the nurse's mouth but then uttered the question that had been plaguing him since he entered the room. She appeared to be sleeping soundly, she appeared to not have nightmares but he knew Alexis better than anyone and she was a master of disguise at hiding her feelings and if she was dreaming about bad things then he needed to know, "Do you think she dreams? I mean can she dream?"

Epiphany paused as she pondered over the response to that question. When family members of the people in comas usually had questions, it was generally how long would she be in this state, is there anything we can do, can she hear us but never do you think that she dreams. She thought about her response before providing it to the man in front of her and then asked the question again as if feeling it out on her tongue, "Can patients in a coma dream? There has been documented proof that says that people in coma do dream but whether it's moments before they wakeup or while they're under deep we have never really found out. Why? Are you worried that she's having nightmares?"

Sonny shook his head in negation of the possibility that she could be having anything but pleasant dreams as he kissed her fingers and said "No, she can only have pleasant dreams wherever she is. Wherever she is, I'm watching out over her even in her dreams."

Epiphany sighed as she felt a stab of pain in her heart for the man so obviously in love with his wife that thought that she could be going through pain, any type of pain was unbearable. She was moved and felt obliged to respond by saying, "Men in love with their wives are really the best things for sick patients. If they know they aren't just fighting for themselves it helps them to focus on their future no matter how grim in may seem. Well, I have been here talking too long with you, I have to go but feel free to stay in here as long as you want."

Sonny smiled in gratitude at the thought that he planned to do just thought. He looked down and glanced at the time that was on his watch as he flinched and cursed under his breath when he noticed the time on his watch, "Thanks for the offer but its getting late and I promised Kristina that I'd see her off to school."

Epiphany nodded as she closed the door behind her and Sonny turned his full attention back to the person on the bed. He stood up and bent over and kissed her lips gently and then stroked the hair away from her face as he leaned down and whispered in her ear, "I refuse to believe that you married me only because you knew that you were dying, the love between us is too great to ever be that deceitful. You love me Alexis Davis-Corinthos and I know it. You are going to beat this pneumonia and then take on this cancer like you do everything else in your life, with control, strength and dignity."

Pulling back he feels the weight of Sam's words leave his shoulders, he didn't doubt in their love anymore. He wouldn't do that, he walked towards the door and turned back at the last minute and spoke to the room, "Have sweet dreams Alexis."  
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_"Wake up Alexis! We are going to be late." _

_Alexis flinched as she was shaken awake and sat up on the couch and held her head as the room started to spin. She closed her eyes trying to regain her balance as she heard a familiar voice speak from above her head, "I told you that staying up last night with her helping her finish her thesis was going to leave you exhausted but do you listen? Never!" _

Alexis cracked an eye open at the familiar rambling but all she could see was a flash of red and black as something was shoved under her nose. She grabbed onto the cup in relief, and croaked out, "Thank you."

She closed her eyes as she started to drain what she assumed was coffee down her dry throat and promptly choked as she started to cough. She felt a hand come and start slapping her softly on the back as she gagged and spat out, "What is this stuff?"

The voice from behind her head spoke again, "That's your morning wheat germ breakfast shake. I'm surprised you had such a violent reaction to it. You've been drinking it every morning for the past fifteen years but I guess you always had to grow out of it sometime. Tomorrow, we can try wheatberry and see if you like that better."

Alexis tried opening her eyes again and was pleased to notice that the dizziness had passed and she was starting to get her bearings again as the room came into focus. The hand that had been slapping her on the back had continued and Alexis reached back and stilled the hand on her back and said, "Thanks, I feel better now. Now, what were you saying about her thesis?"

The voice started to walk around until it was in front of her, "I told you that my niece needed to handle her college work on her own but nooo….supermother that my sister is she decides that after she's had a full day at work that she needs to come home and spoil her oldest by helping her finish up her thesis."

Alexis laid back on the couch as her eyes finally connected the voice with the face as she gasped and croaked out in shock, "Kristina."  
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Sonny walked into the house and saw Sam buttoning Kristina's coat. He noticed his daughter was spouting a serious pout and as he checked his watch he knew why. He had almost, _almost_ been late to take her to school and he knew that would've incurred the wrath of one Kristina Adele Davis-Corinthos who he never wanted to anger since she had a temper that would rival his anyday. He was granted a small smile as Kristina noticed sight of him and pulled out of her sister's arms and ran and threw herself into his arms.

Sonny bent down and picked up his daughter with a flourish as he settled her against his chest, "So I see someone is about ready to go to school."

Sam sighed as she watched the obvious joy between father and daughter who were staring at each in love with their dimples proudly trying to outshine each other. She cleared her throat and tried to swing the attention back to her by saying, "I was about to take Kristina to school. I wanted a chance to speak with her teacher before class."

Sonny nodded and said, "Thanks but I told Kristina I was going to take her to school. You're welcome to come along and we can talk to her teacher together."

Sam fidgeted as she checked her watch and said, "Fine that will work. I'll just go get my purse."

Sonny nodded and said, "That's good, it will give me time to get Molly ready."

Sam stopped on her way up the stairs and said, "You're bringing Molly too? I was going to leave her with Viola and then…."

Sonny cut her off as he shook his head, he wanted to bond with Molly, she was also his daughter, and he loved and cared for her as such. He knew that Sam was looking at taking care of her sisters but not in the same manner that Alexis had and that was unacceptable, "Alexis asked me to take care of all of her girls and that includes Molly. She doesn't have to stay with the nanny all the time, Viola deserves some time off too."

Sam felt a flush of shame rush through her as she realized that once again Sonny was being the better parent. Maybe asking for full custody of her sisters wasn't going to work out like she had planned.

* * *

And this begins the humbling of Sam...she see in the next chapter how wrong she was and apologize! Oh and Alexis's  
dream state? Totally came to me in the middle of the night so just roll with it if it gets confusing, it will always be in italics.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**A/N: An longer update because the length between the last updates, was kinda long. Also, I'll  
be at a wedding so this update will have to hold you for a couple of weeks while I 'recover' from  
my bridesmaid duties. As always, your comments fuel me to keep writing, so let me know your thoughts.**

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_Alexis jumped up in shock as she pulled her sister into a hug and then pulled back in shock. "Kristina, you're…you're alive?" _

Kristina pulled back and looked at her older sister in shock, "Last time I checked my astrological charts I was in for good news this month and next. Why have you heard anything?"

Alexis felt the tears start to stream down her face as she held onto her sister relishing the feeling of having her in her arms again. She pressed a gentle kiss to her cheek and said, "I'm so sorry for everything."

Kristina sighed and crossed her arms, "You're not going to chicken out on me again are you?"

Alexis sat down as she looked at her sister in confusion. Her mind was still muddled and she couldn't fit all of the pieces together but the only thing that mattered to her was that her sister was alive and she hadn't killed her. "Chicken out?"

Kristina pulled her hand in hers and said, "Chicken out Alexis. Chicken out, we get the results back today and you wanted to put this off but I think its important beside you were the one who started on this crusade anyway. Each time we get close you run out the whole spiel about how you love me and nothing that we learn is going to change how you feel about me, blah, blah."

Alexis opened her mouth to ask what on earth she was talking about when a voice came down the stairs and it was then that she noticed her surroundings. She was in Sonny's old penthouse, she was living in PH2? "Mom, Aunt Kristina is right. Ever since you had that cancer scare you were determined to find out the truth, you can't chicken out now."

Alexis looked up at the voice that called her mom and felt her heart stop in her chest as she stared into the face of her daughter, Sam.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Ms. Shepherd?" Debra Shepherd looked up from grading papers at the two people who had just entered into her classroom and stopped short in amazement. Her student, Kristina Adele Corinthos Davis was quick to talk about how handsome her father was or how much she loved her sisters and her mother but she never spoke in terms of seeing her sister and her father together which is what she was privy to at this moment and she was pleased if no other reason than Kristina would have support as her mother went through this especially difficult time.

Alexis Davis was the epitome of the word mother, and when she had been diagnosed with cancer her only concern had been her daughters, so she had setup a parent/teacher conference between herself and Debra stating that she wanted to discuss Kristina. When the woman entered her classroom Debra stopped short, she had never considered herself to be an ugly woman and not an overly attractive one either but when she was in front of the powerhouse that was Alexis Davis she felt she paled considerably. That feeling almost instantly evaporated as Alexis launched into a ten-minute spiel about how concerned she was with Kristina and how she needed Debra to be a second set of eyes/ears for her since she was like Kristina's other keeper. Debra had nodded instantly deciding to agree to whatever the woman in front of her needed so that she could recover and go back to being an excellent mother to her daughters. So as she looked upon the two people in front of her she couldn't help but wonder what could possibly be in store next for them.

Debra fixed a smile on her face as she stuck out her hand and greeted Sam with a smile, "Sam, I see you're back to dropping Kristina off. I must tell you, Kristina wasn't too pleased when you stopped dropping her off; she moped for a couple of days. Are you here to drop off Kristina again and get back into your routine? I know Kristina would love it, is that why you came?"

Sam nodded as she felt choked up, even when she had never felt that instant connection with her mother, her sister, Kristina never failed to come through for her. She looked at Sam with such a sense of love and devotion that Sam felt guilty that she had ever entertained the notion of hurting her mother. Sam focused on the conversation at hand as she motioned to Sonny who was standing next to her with Molly perched on his hip and said, "I'm sure you've met Sonny Corinthos."

Debra shook her head not wanting to lie, "I don't believe I've had the pleasure." She stuck out her hand in way of greeting and Sam stared at Sonny in anger. He hadn't even been up to the school to check on Kristina and he wanted to be the full time caregiver for her sister?

Sonny banished her thoughts of anger towards him with her next words, "You're right we've never been formally introduced, all of our conversations regarding Kristina have been over the phone." After he and Alexis had gotten married in the hospital, she had gone through a list of things she wanted him to handle…

_Flashback _

_"Okay we've discussed Sam and Molly, and now for our child, Kristina." _

_Sonny peered at his new wife of thirty minutes in disbelief, she was already planning out her life as if she wasn't going to be present and he didn't want to get in a fight with her so he sat back and had let her rambled during this whole time about the girls. He didn't want to ask any questions so he let her talk, "What about our daughter?" _

_Alexis smiled softly as she folded her hands in her lap, "You think I'm crazy don't you? I don't know how to stop compartmentalizing my life even though I know that I should be looking forward to a long life. I just want to make sure that everyone is taken care of and I want..." _

_Sonny pulled her hand into his as he realized that she was exposing another one of her weaknesses to him and he couldn't fail her now, "Whatever you want me to do, I'll do. So tell me about Kristina." _

_Alexis reached over into the drawer and pulled out a notebook which she handed to him, "This is all of the information that I have on Kristina's teachers. It's not a complete dossier but it covers the years that she's been in school." _

_Sonny looked at her in confusion as he started flipping through the numerous, detailed pages with conversations and phone logs, he stopped and looked up, "You worry about Kristina this much?" _

_Alexis looked down and said, "I've never denied that your business is dangerous, but my family is just as deadly. The Cassadines, Helena in particular is evil and she wouldn't hesitate to hurt me by using Kristina. So each year that she went into another grade, I did a complete background check on everyone that was involved with our child. Go on; tell me I'm being overprotective and crazy." _

_Sonny closed his mouth in shock as he realized that she had been protecting his daughter from both his worlds and hers, he couldn't love her more. He leaned forward and pressed a hard kiss to her lips, "You put Kristina first, you always did even when it seemed like I didn't. That is what matters, that is what has always mattered, there's nothing else that needs to be said. So what do you want me to do with Kristina's teacher?" _

_End of Flashback _

Debra nodded in agreement as she recalled the thirty minute conversation, that she had been privy too not even a couple of days ago about the status of Kristina's family with her mother. It appeared that Kristina's mother and father had reconciled and married and for all intents and purposes were happy. They were working together to fight Ms. Davis, well Ms. Davis-Corinthos cancer and were going to give Kristina the home and stability she so desperately needed and deserved, "I see that Kristina looks happy with you two together, I'm guessing that's because she's with her sister and father during this especially difficult time in her life. It's important that the two of you work together to make life for Kristina as simplified and close to normal as possible. The closer to her regular schedule the better, and as we were discussing Mr. Corinthos, I will let you know if I see a change in Kristina's behavior."

Sonny smiled in gratitude as he let his dimples flare at the accolade that had been bestowed upon him by Kristina's teacher, it just meant he was doing his job where Alexis was concerned. His hip started to get numb so he shifted Molly to his other side grinning and kissing her as he spoke, "Please call me Sonny. I believe you have all the contact numbers for Sam and me, but if you need to get in touch with us, I wrote everything down for you."

Sam watched in disbelief as Sonny efficiently even while cradling her baby sister, reached into his pocket and pulled out a printed piece of paper which she glanced at as he was handing it over to her sister's teacher. It held all the phone numbers and possible contacts for her and Sonny.

She sighed in resignation as she realized that with even all of her scheming to undermine Sonny, the truth was obvious, Sonny loved her sisters both of them equally, and she was wrong to try to take the only stable father they had in her life. Realizing she needed to eat some humble pie she turned to Sonny and said, "Are you ready to go?"  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

_"Sam?" _

Alexis watched in disbelief as her daughter leaned over and brushed a kiss on her cheek and then spared a hug for her aunt who embraced her warmly. Alexis stared at the young woman standing in front of her and knew that she must be dreaming. The Sam in front of her was wearing jeans and a purple sweater, nothing accentuating her figure but not denying that she had one either. She looked gorgeous in her everyday clothes with fashionable wire frame glasses perched on her nose.

The nose that Alexis noticed she currently had scrunched up at her in disgust, "Sam? When did you decide to shorten my name all of a sudden? You know I hate that nickname; it's either Samantha or nothing. Well, I'm about to be late for class but Mom promise me that you won't back out on Aunt Kristina this time. She really wants to know and it's important that we find out everything. I promise you it's for the best."

Alexis nodded because she had no idea what they were talking about and she was at a loss to do anything else, "I promise Sam…Samantha."

Sam, Samantha rolled her eyes at her mother as she grabbed her purse off the table while grabbing a banana and walked towards the door before turning around to say, "Thanks for your help last night, I would've never finished my thesis if it weren't for you. I'll be back early and I'll make dinner in thanks."

Alexis nodded as Kristina launched into a possible menu while Samantha rolled her eyes in disgust, "Aunt Kristina, ever since you got on this health kick you've been unbearable. I'm making the only dish that I know how to make, spaghetti and meatballs, take it or leave it."

Alexis didn't know what possessed her to speak next but she did, "What's for dessert?"

Samantha grinned at her mother, and Alexis guessed that she had done something right by making the request, because she answered with "Popcorn of course. Bye Mom."

Alexis stood up before she closed the door behind her and pulled her daughter into her arms and held onto her tightly. She pulled back and spoke, "I love you Samantha don't ever forget that. I'm so happy that you have turned out to be a wonderful young woman."

Samantha pulled back as she removed her glasses and wiped the tears that rolled down from her cheeks and kissed her mother on the cheek again and said, "I love you too Mom and I wouldn't be the woman I am if it wasn't for you," She paused to put back on her glasses and look over Alexis's shoulder and say, "Aunt Kristina, don't let her chicken out on you, she's sounding real sentimental today. She got to me and I know since you're such a softie she'll get to you too."

Alexis watched as her daughter closed the door behind her and left. She was gone, her daughter Samantha was gone. She was a college student, who was working on her thesis and she looked happy. She wasn't trying to flaunt her body to gain attention or garner the love of some mob man; she was actually a dedicated student who was sure of herself. Alexis felt the tears start to fall as she turned around and was glad that at least in this dream reality, she had done something right.

_Kristina was fidgeting in front of her and Alexis looked at her sister in question. Kristina bit her lip before launching into a explanation, "Now I know you're scared Alexis but there's no reason. Really. It's always just been you and me and that's fine I just want to know…." _

Alexis let her sister's words drift off as she noticed the penthouse. It was moderately decorated; some pieces were rather eclectic which she knew that she could attribute to Kristina's influence. It was just a normal house which she shared with Kristina and her daughter Samantha. She was curious if her other two daughters existed in this reality or if that had not occurred.

_Alexis cut in on her sister's rambling as she spoke, "Kristina, don't worry about it. Whatever you want to do is fine with me. Let's go, I'm anxious to find out the answers to those questions myself." _

Kristina stopped and looked at her in disbelief, "Are you sure? I mean, I know that I said I wanted to know but if you are really uncomfortable about it…"

Alexis laughed as she tugged her sister into a tight hug that she realized she wanted to last forever but she needed to see what was going on in this strange world. She kissed her sister on the forehead and then pulled back, "I've never been more sure of anything in my life. If it's that important to you than by all means we need to find out and I don't want Samantha to be disappointed so let's go."

Kristina jumped in glee as she reached for their coats and ran to the door excitedly. Alexis trailed behind her at a slower pace, taking a moment to memorize the look of joy on her sister's face, she always appeared to be more of a teenager than the almost twenty-five year old woman that she was and it fascinated her how she always had her youth and exuberance about her. She smiled and Kristina tugged on her arm as she said, "Come on I'll drive."

Alexis was grateful for the small things because she really had no clue as to where she was going in the first place.  
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Sonny and Sam walked into the Metro Court and garnered numerous looks of disbelief from all of its guests. Sonny currently had Molly asleep on his shoulder as Sam was carrying the car seat in one hand while the diaper bag weighed down her shoulder. She had offered numerous times to put her sleeping sister, Molly in the car seat but he refused. Sonny had been deprived, however right or wrong from being around Kristina when she was this age he didn't want to miss anytime with his newest daughter and was enjoying every minute of it as he told Sam.

Sam sighed as she sat down and after the waitresses took their order, launched into her rehearsed apology. She had been pondering over what she would tell him when she sat down in front of him because she knew she had been wrong and an apology was in order after all she had put him through. She stared at Sonny who was looking at her patiently while rubbing Molly's back ensuring she remained asleep as she nodded before launching into an apology, "I'm sorry Sonny. I know I've been unfair to you, the last couple of days. I guess with everything, I just wanted to do something right. The only thing, the _only_ thing that my mother asked of me was to look out for my sisters and I wanted to do to the best of my ability since I failed at everything else for her. I'm not what Alexis would want in a daughter, I'm not even what she would want in a friend and when she asked me to take charge of my sisters I felt as if I could actually take the chance to make up for all the hurt I caused her but I guess I screwed that up huh?"

Sonny leaned forward as he patted her lightly on the hand before shaking his head and said, "Why do you do this to yourself Sam? I never told you and I know Alexis never told you that you had to bend over backwards to prove that you love your sisters, I see it and I know that Alexis sees it. It's why she asked you to look out for them in the first place. Don't let your misguided sense of guilt cause you to take measures that aren't needed. We can all exist happily without being at each others throats. The girls don't need that."

To punctuate that statement Molly shot her head up as she awoke from her nap, Sonny grinned at her softly and said, "Hey, pretty girl." Molly smiled a wide toothless grin as she laid her forehead on his chin a moment which garnered a kiss before laying her head back on his chest and sighing happily before promptly falling asleep again.

Sam nodded as she saw the tenderness that Sonny was exhibiting and the obvious feeling of safety that Molly felt with the man who had become such a big part of her life in such a short time. She felt even more guilty as she realized that she was really the odd man out and not the other way around no matter how she tried to rewrite history, she closed her eyes in shame as felt the tears spill down her cheeks, "You love my sisters so much and I can't deny that. You love them equally and I won't ever doubt your love for them but there's still a matter that we have to discuss Sonny, a matter that I'm sure my mother is worried about even if she hasn't discussed it with you. They aren't safe with you, no one is. Even if you love them with all your heart, you can't protect them. No one, no one has been able to protect me, my mother, Carly, Jason or anyone that we care about from the effects of your lifestyle. I know you love my mother and my sisters but do you love them enough to give up your lifestyle to ensure their safety?"  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
_Alexis inhaled a sharp breath in anticipation of whatever was about to be revealed, since on the way over Kristina had made whatever they were about to learn seem ominous. She had been grateful that due to her experience as a lawyer she was able to pull the answers to some questions from Kristina that had been plaguing her since she woke up in this bizarre reality. Apparently even in this life, she was a lawyer but not a corporate one but a lawyer who fought for children's rights. She had apparently gained recognition for her extraordinary work and had been offered numerous positions as lead counsels in many lucrative firms but had refused instead choosing to focus her sights on insuring that justice for children was always sought. She had devoted her life to being a mother to her only child, her daughter Samantha. She was still unsure of the father but apparently in this reality he wasn't in the picture and Kristina didn't touch on the subject other than Sam was an extraordinary daughter and niece that Kristina couldn't stop gushing over. _

She also apparently had been at the doctor's office for a routine checkup when they had noticed something abnormal on her pap smear and a biopsy was needed. It had turned out to be a benign tumor that they had taken out at the time of the biopsy but the whole experience had apparently left her shaken which is how they arrived at the private investigator's office. She was still sketchy about how she came to be in Kristina's life but apparently she had been there from the start which is why they were currently sitting in the investigator's office waiting for his report.

_His report on what, she didn't know but as her sister squeezed her hand she knew that it must have been of utmost importance. _

_As the door opened, and the voice filtered in behind her, Alexis had her second shock of the day. Because in walked the father of her daughter in her real life, "Sonny." _

Kristina gasped as she turned to her in shock and said, "Alexis, come on. You know that you can't call him that. It was one of his prerequisites for working with us; it's stipulated in the verbal contract."

The man that Alexis knew as Sonny still had the same commanding stare, the same calming smile and those irresistible dimples but as he grinned she noticed that the shadows that had haunted her Sonny didn't exist, this man simply put was happy. He leaned over and said, "Ms. Davis, I believe I instructed you that I like all my clients to call me Michael. Sonny seems so gangster and even though it's in name of the company, I prefer my clients call me Michael."

_Alexis felt a hysterical laugh bubble out of her throat at the thought that his name in her life his name meant just that but she refused to acknowledge that as her sister rolled her eyes at her in shock and said, "Alexis! I'm sorry Michael, I don't know what's going on with her today, I guess she's just anxious like I am to see the results of the report…." She broke off as Kristina's cell phone rang and she rolled her eyes as her sister showed her the phone and said, "Look who's calling!" _

_Alexis peered into the phone as she stared at the caller ID in disbelief, "Does that say Patrick Drake?" _

_Kristina shook her head as she turned to Michael apologetically, and then turned to Alexis, "Wait for me before you start. I told Patrick that after he cheated on me with that night nurse, it was over but no he keeps calling, I guess being nice isn't working." _

_Alexis watched as her sister shuffled quickly out of the office closing the door behind her which left her and Sonny or Michael as he preferred to be called alone. She didn't know if she could continue to handle anymore surprises. She had been lost in her own thoughts when she noticed that Michael or Sonny as she knew him wasn't sitting at his desk. She looked up and was instantly pulled into Michael's arms as he kissed her with an intensity that stole her breath away. He pulled her into his arms and started reaching for the buttons on her shirt as she started to run kisses down his face out of habit when she heard him swear from above her and still her hands, "Damn it. We can't do this here Alexis; I thought she would never leave. I owe Patrick one for calling her at this time, I didn't know if I was going to be able to sit through this meeting without touching you or kissing you. I can't wait until this assignment is over, I'm just pissed that I made the damn rule about not getting involved with clients in the first place..." _

Alexis sighed in contentment as she laid her head on his chest as she tried to catch her breath after almost making love in the middle of Sonny's office. She exhaled a deep breath as she struggled to hold on to her emotions as she tried to grasp this new reality and what it meant to her.

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"McCall lunch in twenty!" Sam looked up as her name was called, she had been browsing through a catalog for classes at the local college and noticed that some of them seemed interesting but she didn't know which one to pick. Her first interest had been the legal system, then she had decided on journalism to be different but that had started not to appeal to her.

Cruz stuck his head out from the kitchen door as he tried to garner her attention again by whistling. Sam stood up with her arms crossed as she stared at the man who had quickly become a part of her world and her friend and scolded him for his persistence, "You know you don't have to stay Cruz. I told you that I spoke with Sonny and we are going to work things out and while I appreciate you offering to stay and all…..I just."

Cruz rolled his eyes as he sat down next to her on the couch and pulled her into his arms. Over the last couple of days, he had been subjected to all sides of Sam McCall and found the side he was most intrigued by was the one that loved her family fiercely and who she was without Jason Morgan. It was almost as if she flourished without Jason weighing her down, it was a breath of fresh air and something he didn't want to give up any sooner than he had to. He squeezed her shoulders and said, "Hey I'm leaving after lunch, but why can't we be friends Sam? I think you and I got off on the wrong foot, you were always yelling because we had arrested Sonny or Jason and I didn't think you treated your mother with enough respect. I see now how wrong I was about you….."

He stared at her patiently waiting for a response to his confession that he was hoping for friendship, and if he was lucky it could possibly emerge into something more. Sam didn't want to meet his eyes to let him know that she was attracted to the man beside her as she started fidgeting trying to find away out of the conversation that was suddenly making her nervous, "Fine. I was wrong about you too, a little bit okay maybe a lot. I still don't like that you work, worked with Ric but then I guess you really didn't have a choice. So, I guess we can be friends."

Cruz smiled as he realized that she was nervous by his presence and maybe the disinterested look she adapted was really just a front. He decided to focus on something else as he looked down and peered at the book that still lay on the couch open in the middle. He picked it up with a curious glance as he looked at her with a smile, "Thinking of going back to school?"

Sam nodded and reached to swipe the book out of his arms, she didn't really want anyone to know about her aspirations just yet, the last one that she had those aspirations with was Jason and that was so long ago that she didn't know if he still remembered. She lunged for the book again when Cruz held it just out of her reach as he flipped through the pages and stopping to look at the page that she had earmarked, "Law? Really, you want to be a lawyer like your mother?"

Sam took the book out of his hands, embarrassed as she stuck into her back pocket and looked down and said, "I know one famous attorney in the family is enough right? I don't know I just always liked the idea of fighting for the underdog and I think a lawyer is a perfect way to do that."

Cruz shook his head knowing that she had a fragile ego and he didn't want her to believe that no one believed in her, "I don't think it's a bad idea, hey it's obviously in your genes so why not capitalize on what you already have working for you?"

Sam nodded as she closed the book and said, "In my genes huh? I wonder what else is in my genes; you know I look at Alexis at times, I'm just in awe. She's so strong, she's always in control like nothing can ever touch her and I just wonder how my life would've been if I had been raised with her. I know that she would've loved me but I just wonder if I would be as messed up emotionally if she had been by my side all of my life guiding me, giving me the values that would've made me a better person than the mess you see in front of you."

Cruz pulled her back into his arms as she launched herself into a pity party and said, "Sam you're not a mess. You have been through a hell of a lot in a short period of time and I think everyone would say that you deserved to act out; I don't know if sleeping with your mother's husband was the best route. But hey, you are still here trying and that says something."

Sam nodded as she started to cry and Cruz started to rock her gently in his arms when they heard someone clear their throat. Sam looked up into the pained eyes of Jason as she felt her heart drop at the look of betrayal on his face.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny sat in front of Lainey with a pleased smile gracing his face. The thought that he would have one less person to battle for Alexis had him happy and especially since it was her daughter and someone who obviously meant a lot to her. He looked up at Lainey's gaze and smiled softly, "Well Sam and I have worked out things out peaceably, and I'm pleased to say that she's finally accepting that we can live together as a family for now. She still has her reservations but she's trying to work on them."

Lainey nodded as she wrote something down on her notepad as she listened to him intently and said, "Do you want to tell me about those reservations? Maybe if you can discuss them with someone we can come up with an appropriate response so that you can know how to handle the situation if the question comes up again and provide Sam with a response that can satisfy her and make you feel more at ease."

Sonny sighed as he pondered over whether to discuss the last words that Sam had said to him that hadn't left his mind and had him wondering seriously about the possibility. He was hesitant to mention the idea for fear that Lainey's information could possibly be compromised but deciding that for Alexis he would do anything he nodded and said, "She wanted to know if I loved Alexis and the girls enough to leave my dangerous lifestyle and be just a regular businessman."

Lainey leaned back in her chair as she pondered on how to proceed with her next questions. She had always been curious about that fact but never enough to broach the subject with him, especially since he made it clear that his business was off limits. She leaned forward and wondered about how much his marriage had really softened as she stared at him in interest and asked, "And what was your response to the question? It's a valid one I think and one that Sam has a right to be concerned about, don't you?"

Sonny shook his head as he thought about the answer to the question. He knew that even if with ever fiber in his being he wanted to get out he couldn't so he said, "Sam does a valid reason to be concerned after all the times that she was in danger because of either Jason or I but, I'm in too deep, and I don't have an out, even if I wanted one."

Lainey stopped as she heard that last sentence, if he wanted one. She was curious so she asked, "Do you want an out? Do you ever wander what your life had been like if you hadn't been caught up in this life of crime?"

Sonny flinched as the question was asked and he felt his mind drifted as he remembered a similar conversation almost 5 years earlier,

_Flashback _

_Alexis hadn't looked him in the eyes once since he had said that he was going back to Carly. Oh she had looked at him and even smiled but not the smile that he was accustomed to, the one that ensured that he would have a good day and that all was right with the world if she was by his side, he had been lost in his own thoughts when she uttered, "D__id you ever want out when you were Zander's age?" _

_Sonny was shocked by the question and looked at her trying to read her eyes to understand what she meant by the cryptic question but she wouldn't meet his gaze, she had never really asked him about his past only brief snippets about what he had suffered but never what he would do if he was forced to live an alternate reality. He could answer the question with the only truth that he knew, "I used to see these college kids on the subway with their books and pens and cheap clothes, and they'd go on and on about geometry or some history exam and something I didn't know anything about. Still don't. And I always wondered, "What do these guys do every day? What would it be like to sit in a classroom all day?" Sometimes I wanted to be like that." _

_He let his last words fall; he had wanted to be like that sometimes. But by then the blood on his hands had been too great and he couldn't change his mind even if he wanted to, he started to talk about his sister again when she asked another question, "Could that have happened? I mean, I -- could you have gotten out?" _

_Sonny hated focusing on what-if's. They always made him feel like an inferior, if he had been in another time, another world he would be worthy of her, but it was too late to turn back the clock. He stumbled over his words as he uttered, "I was already in too deep. If I had even mentioned it, Scully -- Scully didn't like quitters. Ahem." _

_End of Flashback _

Sonny met Lainey's eyes as he left that memory of so long ago and spoke honestly from his heart, "I think about it everyday."

* * *

Didn't I say long? Sam did apologize but she still has a way to go...I wish I could write for the Samantha in the dream  
sequence who wear glasses, she's fun! 


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Note to self, weddings suck...As an entirety they suck. From the bridesmaid dress to the high heels that make your foot look like a encased  
sausage to ensuring that the future bride gets all of her wishes met including hairstyles that make you look like a hooker instead of bridesmaid stuffed  
uncomfortably in a dress...So I made a decision, I've decided when the time comes, I'm eloping. Vegas here I come, I don't care if Elvis (dead or alive) is officiating the ceremony,  
I'm not going through that whole thing again, and yet another dress hanging in my closet that I'll never wear anywhere else...but in the end ain't love grand?

Well, at least it is for Sexis...Next chapter, thoughts please:)

**Chapter 14**

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_Alexis pulled back as she looked at the man that she loved in this reality, this reality where she could actually conceive them building a life together. They could actually be happy if this wasn't a dream. Michael leaned forward and cradled her face in his hands as he pressed his lips to hers again insistently, "I wanted you to come over last night but I knew that you were going to be up all night helping Samantha with her thesis and to be honest, I had my own hands full with babysitting my godson Stone." _

Alexis nodded as she listened processing his words, slowly when she stopped and said, "Stone? Robin's Stone?"

Michael leaned against the edge of the desk, "Yes. You remember when you and I first met we had been pleasantly surprised about all the people we knew in common and we didn't know how it was possible we hadn't met before now. Yea, Robin and Stone were going on another vacation to celebrate their ten year anniversary and I was in charge of babysitting my godchild but fortunately tonight his Grandpa Mac takes over diaper duty so I'm free if you are."

_Alexis smiled as she nodded shocked to hear that Robin was still with Stone who from her talks with Sonny she drew was the young love of her life; she liked knowing that even in this reality Michael or Sonny as she would always think of him would be able to tell the truth from simple eye contact. It was one thing that she had been cursed with and was grateful for at the same time. She decided to play up her relationship with the man she could love freely in this world as she leaned forward and pressed her body into his urgently as she took the lead in the kiss this time, gently prying open his mouth with her tongue and pulling his waist into her body tightly, loving the feel of his body so close to hers. She sighed against his mouth when she felt the sign of his arousal press into her hip as she got lost in the feel of his hands. _

_Michael was the one who actually pulled away and for once Alexis was grateful that she didn't see the desire flickering out but rather him trying to adjust himself. He walked behind his desk and pointed to the chair in front of his desk and instructed, "Sit!" _

_Alexis flinched at the tone in his voice but did as she was asked. She didn't want to look in his eyes for fear of anger but when she meet his eyes they were smoldering with desire, "Alexis, we were about to have sex in the middle of my office. My hands are shaking and I've never been this close to losing control. I've always been a controlled person, never one who was quick to short bursts of temper but when I'm with you, I'm so conflicted that I want to lock the door, screw the investigation and just screw you." _

_Alexis flinched at his choice of words and Michael swore, "God I'm sorry Alexis. I was raised better by my mother Adele and I know she would slap my hand if she were here. I apologize for my vulgarity but even that doesn't seem to slack off this desire that I have for you. Once this case is closed tonight, I want you to introduce me to Samantha, Kristina and the rest of your family as your boyfriend and let them know that you will only be my girlfriend for a limited time. I'm looking at our engagement to be announced at the maximum in two weeks." _

_Alexis gasped as she watched Sonny flip through his desk calendar with ease as he nodded as if he was pleased with the date, "Two weeks should do. I will have finished all the major cases on my books, yours was definitely the high priority and now that it's wrapping up we should have time for a month long honeymoon. I want to start on our family immediately." _

_Alexis felt her mouth drop open but refused to speak, instead allowing him to continue ordering her life. She was a control-freak and control was being ripped out of her hands as her life was being planned for her but for once she didn't care. The man she loved was choosing her and a life with her and she had never felt better. _

The door opened as Kristina flipped her phone shut and then looked between the two of them and started to stomp her foot as she looked at the guilt on their faces and misinterpreted it, "Darn it! You guys started without me, Michael I told you to wait for me to get here."

Alexis stared at Michael in question wondering how they were going to get out of this but Michael smiled at her reassuringly flashing her his dimples as he shook his head and said, "Kristina we were talking about something personal. I haven't even taken the file out of my drawer; we've been waiting on you."

Kristina sighed as she plopped in the chair and said, "Patrick wasn't calling me to offer an apology Alexis. He just wanted my help at the Nurses' Ball. Since Lucy dropped out because she and Kevin are having another baby, he needs someone with exuberance and he thinks I would be perfect, Alan talked him into asking me since we had a **prior** relationship."

_Alexis smiled softly and said, "You'll be great Kristina. You'll always exceed at whatever you set your mind too." _

Kristina stared at her in disbelief and said, "Michael, what were you two discussing? I swear ever since she woke up this morning, she's been all nostalgic, Samantha and I are starting to think she's been working too many hours at that firm."

_Michael raised an eyebrow to her but Alexis blushed and looked elsewhere as he reached for the folder and started to speak, "Well Alexis you approached me recently to help you investigate the whereabouts of your biological family after you were separated at an early age. You gave me these basic facts which I just want to review before we continue and in verifying these facts I'm also assuming that I'm giving you the right info. You told me that at the age of 12 your mother was visited by a woman who went by a name that you have blocked out and that she….." _

Alexis allowed the truth to fall from her lips without forethought, "Helena Cassadine killed my mother."

Michael stopped during his dissertation to look towards Kristina in question who was staring at her sister in shock as she asked, "Alexis you always told me you blocked out the events of that night. You said it was too painful and you didn't want to try therapy or hypnosis to remember, what caused the trigger?"

_Alexis refused to answer the question instead reaching for a tissue as she wiped the tears that had inadvertently fallen from her eyes as the memory of her mother's murder raced through her mind and focused on his words, "Well that completes the piece of the puzzle I wasn't sure about. You told me that after this, Helena Cassadine slit your mother's throat you took your sister and ran away. You were eventually caught and put in a foster home, but due to your age they tried to split the two of you up when Kristina came up for adoption which you wouldn't allow and always staged riots to ensure that she remained under your care. You waited until you were 16 and then you took your 5 year old sister out and started to work at an office for an older gentleman who allowed you room and board while you finished school. You were able to excel in high school where you later went to community college and got your law degree. You were never really able to piece together where your origins were from but after your scare with cancer, you decided to investigate which leads me to the findings of this report. I think I've located your family. All of them." _

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sam jumped up as she looked at the pain in Jason's eyes and felt a stab of guilt in her heart. She hadn't been doing anything bad with Cruz but her heart hadn't exactly been honest to Jason either during the conversation, "Jason, what are you doing here?"

Cruz cleared his throat as he stared at the two lovers who were obviously anxious to discuss what had just occurred and he suddenly felt like a third wheel. He dropped his arms from Sam and came from beside her and said, "I'll clean up in the kitchen and be on my way."

Sam nodded even though she wasn't focused on his words only the hurt that she saw radiating out of Jason's eyes, the hurt that she knew that she had put there. She broke their eye connection as she nodded and turned around to meet Cruz's face with a grateful smile, "Thank you for everything Cruz. I hope this won't be the end of our friendship, besides I have to keep track of my sister's boyfriend don't I?" She flashed him a grin hoping it would be enough to lighten the tension in the room as she looked back at Jason who had taken a chair and was watching their interaction with interest.

Cruz smiled, thankful that the light that had been resident in Sam's eyes before Jason's arrival came back. He was grateful so much so, that he pulled her into his arms acknowledging that he was receiving threatening glares from Jason over her shoulder that he didn't care about. He pulled back and smiled, "I'll be seeing you McCall."

Sam smiled again as she watched Cruz walk up the stairs and then turned back to Jason and stated as way of explanation, "He is just leaving."

Jason crossed his arms in front of him as he pondered over her one line answer to the fact that she and Cruz had been in an embrace. He didn't understand how things between the two of them could've gone down such a horrible track, "So I can see. Tell me Sam, what happened between the two of you?"

Sam sat on the edge of the couch as she looked at him in question not liking the tone in his voice. She had been the one to call an end to her relationship with Jason and even if she still loved the man it didn't give him the right to look at her like he was condescending down to her, "What do you mean by that? At the time, I wanted an ally to help convince Sonny that his marriage to my mother is a mistake and Cruz has always supported my mother and cared about her and my sisters so I thought he would be a good candidate."

Jason stood up and ran his arms over the back of the chair before gripping the top and looking at her pained, "And why couldn't you ask me to help you? Sam, you know I would do anything for you."

Sam snorted in disbelief at his statement and then covered her mouth in shock. She knew that her noise would be viewed as hurtful to Jason but it was the first thing that came to her mind after his last statement, "Maybe because you helped Carly keep Sonny and Alexis away before means that your priorities are just a little screwy. If there's a choice between Sonny and my mother, you will be loyal to Sonny and not my mother and that's what Cruz was willing to do."

Jason flinched at the sure tone in her voice that he wouldn't support her, "I would've been loyal to you Sam, loyal to you. If you wanted my help with Sonny, I would've helped you out of loyalty and love to you. Only you."

Sam closed her eyes as she felt the pain in his voice make the tears well in her eyes and said, "You love Carly the same way though Jason, you always have. She asked you to do this before and you didn't hesitate and maybe just maybe, I didn't want to be reminded of that fact okay. My mother has lost so much at the hands of Carly, Sonny and you that I didn't want her to lose something else and that was me breaking my promise to her."

Jason sat down again as he heard her justification and realized that even on some level there was some truth to it even though he couldn't help but point out, "We are the only ones to blame for your mother's pain? Really Sam? Alexis could've just as easily told Sonny the truth about Kristina and spared herself some of this pain."

Sam felt the anger rise in her as her mother's words filtered over her consciousness, her mother's truth the one that she hadn't even bothered to listen too before judging her. As she heard the pain and isolation in her mother's voice she let the anger take place of the sadness as she spat out, "Oh yea Jason when? When would that be exactly? When Carly was coming down the stairs in Sonny's shirt, the same shirt my mother had worn only weeks before after she made love to her soulmate? Or maybe when Bobbie threw a homecoming party for Alexis and Carly pushed her and almost caused her to lose my sister, Kristina? Or better yet, once Carly had changed Sonny so much and not for the better that he sent men, you especially to beat up Zander, a child that my mother loved like her own, a child that she had imagined that Sonny cared about too? When during all of this time could my Mom have gone up to Sonny and told him the truth?"

Cruz came charging down the stairs at the sound of the loud voices. He had packed up the last of his stuff and was headed downstairs when he heard the rising tones and became concerned. He closed the door to Molly's room first before coming down the stairs to see what was going on. He had been under the impression that he was going to have to interrupt a passionate reunion to make a hasty exit out of the house but when he heard voices starting to raise he knew that he better get downstairs and referee, "Hey you guys. Molly is still trying to sleep so if you are going to continue this fight, I suggest you take it elsewhere."

Jason scowled as he jumped up enraged that his hopes of some alone time with his girlfriend had been ruined by a bitter fight as he walked out of the room but not before shooting over his shoulder, "Don't worry I'm leaving."

Cruz waited for Sam to jump up and follow him pleading for forgiveness but she didn't which shocked him. What she did do was look down and refuse to meet Jason's eyes as he left, she instead turned to Cruz with a simple acknowledgement of his words. Her main priority had to be taking care of her sisters and it didn't do anyone any good that she was fighting with Jason within earshot of Kristina or Molly even if she was just a baby. She smiled even as she felt the tears ready to start anew as she turned to Cruz and said, "Thank you. I'll go check on her and Cruz thank you again for everything." She ran up the stairs eager to complete her mission, she was going to check on her sister, Molly, and then she was going to her room, alone to ponder over what the fight with Jason really meant.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny sighed to himself as he reviewed the plans that Alexis had for the clinic that was to be setup in remembrance of her granddaughter and Lila Quartermaine. Everything already appeared to be in order, she had handled all of the legal aspects of the clinic ensuring that all of the proper permits had been obtained; his next goal was to get it completed, even though his heart was telling him that he needed to wait for Alexis to have the ribbon cutting ceremony. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he didn't notice that Jason had entered the room disgusted and plopped down in the chair in front of him.

His conversation with Lainey about forgiveness made him realize that even though Jason had been wrong so had he and he didn't have the right to hold a five-year grudge against the man he loved like a brother. A brother that he needed to care for and Sam's conversation about getting of the mob was currently pounding on his head. Should he get out of the mob? Would it make his life easier? He knew it would make Alexis respect him even more and that was currently the reason he stopped for every decision he made.

He looked at the look of frustration resident on his friend's face and asked, "What's up Jason?"

Jason slumped down further into the chair and said, "Sam just chewed me out for the pain Alexis went through at all of our hands. She didn't even want to listen to reason and her only concern was protecting her mother and not what that doing could do to our relationship. What do you think about that?"

Sonny leaned back and nodded as he pondered over the last statement she had uttered his way, "Sam wants me out of the mob and Lainey asked me if I had ever thought about getting out."

Jason paused in his own sulking and looked at him, "Have you? I mean seriously thought about taking the steps to get out of the mob. It would mean a completely different lifestyle for you."

Sonny looked at him and knew that he couldn't lie to the man in front of him, his brother Jason so he said, "A lifestyle where the woman I love is not cowering in fear that something is going to happen to her or our children because of my business dealings. After everything she's been through, Ric, Sam and the cancer I want her to have this, it gives her a peace of mind and to tell you the truth, it gives me one as well."

Jason sighed as he leaned forward and looked at his friend trying to decide how serious he was about going out of the business and asked, "Okay you want her to have peace of mind and I respect that but what will you do Sonny? What will be your living for the rest of your life? Will you make yourself content to just be by Alexis's side and not have anything to do with this life anymore? This life that you created from the ground up out of nothing when you had nothing and considered yourself nothing? I want out just as badly as you do but have we ever stopped to think about the consequences?"

Sonny closed the manila folder in front of him and pondered over whether he was right or not to let Jason in on Alexis's plan. He debated and then finally decided that he needed to know how much Alexis really loved Sam; he slid the folder across to him and instructed, "Read that."

Jason looked at Sonny in confusion but opened up the folder and started to get choked up as he reviewed the contents, "Alexis has been creating a memorial for Sam's daughter? Sam doesn't know about it, I'm sure but Sonny this is, this is amazing. This is wonderful."

Sonny nodded as Jason closed the folder and slid it back across to him and said, "This is Alexis. Amazing, stubborn, beautiful, and so very worthy of having everything I own left at her feet if she so chooses. If she was able to look past everything I did, Sam did and see the good in people why can't I?"

Jason cleared his throat as he tried to rationalize with his friend, "This proves that Alexis has a big heart. She also has the ability to forgive and she can move on, but even if she married you do you think she wants a life with you? Sam believes that Alexis was preparing for her death and not her life, if she was preparing for her life she wouldn't have chosen you. What if you make all these sacrifices and she dies or worse yet, what if you make these sacrifices and she wakes up and doesn't even want you?"

* * *

Dude, so next chapter we delve back into the drama/angst and it holds for about 3-4 more chapters while I figure  
out how to pull my girl out of this and reunite her with her man! 


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Next update.

**Chapter 15**

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_Alexis didn't know how to react. This reality was growing stranger by the second, one moment she was living in Sonny's old penthouse with her daughter and her sister and the next she was in front of the man she loved who was a private investigator. She was also on the verge of finding out about the Cassadine's and she didn't want to know the story. _

_Kristina gripped her hand and said, "Alexis, he found them. Did you hear that? We can finally find our family!" _

_Alexis nodded but refused to make a sound even though she could feel Michael's eyes roaming over her face hoping for a connection. She refused to meet his eyes; to meet his eyes would be to allow him a window to her soul. One she was trying desperately to keep to herself. _

_Michael looked at the paper in front of him, "Helena Cassadine murdered Kristina Bergmann in cold blood." _

_Kristina felt a sob escape her mouth as she asked, "How did she murder our mother?" _

_Michael flinched as he met Alexis's eyes, "Is it really that important to know how?" _

_Kristina nodded even as Alexis drifted back into her memories of that time as her voice fell flat and she uttered, "She slit her throat Kristina. She slit her throat." Even if in this reality she hadn't known the truth, she hadn't been guarded in the other reality her memories were as vivid as if they had happened yesterday. _

Kristina stared at Michael before pulling Alexis in her arms as the tears started falling freely from her face, "What happened to Helena Michael?"

Alexis had her eyes closed because she didn't want to hear that Helena was still walking around killing people and wreaking havoc on her family, but she could still feel Michael's gaze boring into her skin, "Helena Cassadine is dead."

_Alexis's eyes flew open at that statement as she felt the room start to spin, "She's dead? Helena Cassadine is dead." _

_Michael nodded and said, "Mikkos Cassadine who is your father killed her with his bare hands upon learning of her actions. He had spent the last years of his life searching for his daughters, you and Kristina because he wanted to unite his family. Upon his death, he passed the edict over to his eldest son Stavros who had been searching for you two effortlessly." _

Alexis heard the last words but she fell to the floor in a dead faint before she had time to process them.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sam knocked on the door to Sonny's office and entered without waiting for a response. Sonny was at the desk perusing some documents in a folder making notations with his pen inside of a folder. He obviously didn't hear her because when she cleared her throat he scrambled to cover up what he had been looking at. He nodded for her to take a seat and said, "How can I help you Sam?"

Sam leaned forward as he launched into an explanation of her latest concern, "Kristina came home after school and couldn't take a nap. She's in her room crying for Alexis. I don't know how to help her and I thought since you were her father…."

Sonny swore under his breath and nodded as he stood up without thought to the papers left on his desk and started towards the door but at the last minute halted as he turned to Sam, "I'm on my way. You coming?"

Sam nodded as she watched him leave but was curious about the papers on his desk that he had left unattended so she said, "I'll be there in a minute." Sonny ran off his thoughts focusing on carrying for his daughter and not thinking about what he had left open on the desk. Sam reached for the file wondering if Sonny was planning on keeping her away from her sisters and he had something in the folder that could help him.

She reached across the desk and pulled the papers to her and started reading without hesitation. She felt the tears start falling from her face as she read the plans that Alexis had been carefully constructing since learning that Sam was her daughter months ago, she had been planning on creating a memorial in remembrance of her only grandchild.

Sam felt the nausea rise in her stomach at the hateful words that she had always uttered at Alexis. She had called her a control-freak, she had called her a bitch, she had called her everything but what she truly was. Her mother, her mother who had always loved her in spite of all of her faults was showing again how selfless she was and selfish she continued to be.

She reached for the trash can and vomited the contents of her stomach as she curled up into a ball too devastated by the signs of her own betrayal.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Daddy, I can't sleep. I'm worried about Mommy." Sonny held his daughter on his knee as he stroked the hair out of her eyes and pressed gentle kisses all over her forehead and said, "Sweetie, I told you that Mommy's sleeping."

Kristina laid her head on his chest as she stared up into his eyes so like her own and said, "But Daddy, I've always been with Mommy when she needs me and I want to see her. What if she misses me? What if she's having nightmares and I'm not there to hold her hand."

Sonny kissed his daughter on the top of the head curious about the insight that his daughter had just provided him with and inquired, "Does Mommy have a lot of nightmares? Does she wake up during the night?"

Kristina nodded and then shut her mouth as if she was realizing that she was telling one of her mother's secrets. Sonny cleared his throat not wanting to let his daughter feel as if she was betraying her mother but also needing to know how Alexis was doing emotionally, "You have to let me know what is scaring your Mommy so maybe I can help her."

Kristina slid down from his lap as she paced around like he had seen Alexis do many times before stopping and turning to him and saying, "Daddy, if I tell you, you have to promise that you won't tell Mommy I told you. I don't want her to be mad at me."

Sonny nodded as he met her eyes on hoping to convey his sincerity through eye contact alone, "I promise sweetheart."

Kristina fidgeted and then finally deciding her father was worthy of her mother's secret said, "Mommy cries sometimes for her sister. She told me that she misses Kristina and that she's sad that she's gone. She doesn't want me to ever miss Molly like that so she wants us to be together always. She told me that sisters should never, ever be apart. Why was Mommy apart from her sister Daddy, why weren't they together forever like me, Molly and Sam are?"

Sonny felt his heart clench at the simple words that his daughter had uttered that let him know that the pain of Kristina's death still hadn't left his wife, "Mommy was apart from her sister because of a mean woman. A woman who will never bother you or your mother ever again, you won't be separated from Molly or Sam ever."

Kristina smiled softly as she walked forward stopping at his knees but staring into his eyes, "You promise Daddy?"

Sonny nodded as he pulled her into his arms for a hug and said, "I promise. What do you say we go have dinner?"

Kristina nodded always up for her father's cooking but then asked again, "Can we see Mommy afterwards?"

Sonny sighed he wanted to see his wife as well but wasn't sure if it was a good time to visit and said, "I'll think it about it sweetie I promise. Let's go get something to eat."  
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

_Stavros Cassadine was alive and he wanted to meet them. What kind of nightmare had she stepped into? What was going on with her life? She heard Michael and Kristina standing over her talking to each other about her. _

_'Maybe this was too much Michael. I think I should take her home." _

_'Kristina, go get Alexis some water, I'll stay with her.' _

_'Alexis, damn it don't do this. Not when I just found you, I can't lose you. Wake up honey.' _

_'Michael, here's the water. Alexis, please I'm sorry I ever pushed you to find them, please just wake up." _

_Alexis opened her eyes to see two set of eyes staring at her worriedly. Alexis sighed as she reached for the cup of water and started to sip slowly, "I don't want to meet those people. Kristina, I don't want you to have any contact with them either. Michael, if that's all we'll be going." _

_Alexis tried to stand but her legs were still wobbly as she reached for the back of the chair for support. Kristina hovered around her anxiously still worried about what had caused her sister to lose consciousness and said, "We've come this far Alexis, we can't just stop now." _

Alexis flinched as she looked at the hope in her sister's eyes. She just wanted to connect with her heritage no matter what the consequences but before it had been deadly and she wasn't prepared to allow it to become deadly again even if it was only a dream; she just wanted to know who her family was. She turned to Michael, "What have the Cassadine's been up to while Kristina and I have been growing up?"

_Michael stared at her and said, "Stavros and Stefan Cassadine are brothers who are very close in age and who love each other and they are devoted to the Cassadine business. It appeared that the influence of Helena on Stavros was going to have a lasting effect but with the help of his father Mikkos, and his brother Stefan he was able to drop the qualities he inherited from her and instead focused on raising the family and after his father's death he has been focusing his time on locating you." _

_Alexis opened her mouth but found she couldn't speak. Michael smiled softly and said, "Alexis they are nice people. I had some of my operatives check them out, and Die Alexis Die." _

Alexis stopped as she processed those last words uttered by the man she loved and cleared her throat, "What did you say?"

_Michael/Sonny sneered at her as his face twisted into another evil face, one that constantly woke her out of nightmares, her ex-husband Ric and said, "You heard me, They are charitable Die Alexis Die."  
_&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
Sonny cradled Molly on his hip as he entered Alexis's hospital room with Kristina clutching his hand. He had pondered over everything Kristina had confessed to him and realized that if Kristina needed to see Alexis for her own peace of mind that he wasn't going to deny her and especially since he needed to see her as well.

He let the door close behind him before he turned to the bed and stopped short as he saw Ric leaning down and whispering in Alexis's ear some vague threats about death. Ric stopped short when he noticed that Sonny had entered the room with his daughter on his hip and his ex-step daughter clutching her father's hand.

He stepped back and smirked at Sonny who was standing there seething, he was grateful that he had Alexis's girls holding his hands because otherwise there would've been nothing stopping him from wrapping his hands around his throat and squeezing until the last breath left his worthless body, "First of all, get out of my chair and away from Alexis."

Ric stood up as Kristina smiled as she looked up at him, "Uncle Ric, did you come to visit Mommy too? Daddy told me that even though she's sleeping we can tell her that we love her, is that what you were doing?"

Sonny is prevented from speaking as the unthinkable happens and as he looks towards the bed hoping to draw strength from the sight of Alexis as the monitor that is watching her vital signs starts to beep frantically as Alexis flat lined.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Ric watched in shock as his brother started to crumble as he walked in front of him and with an almost demonic grin as he reached for his daughter and said, "She's gone Sonny. Give me back my daughter."

The doctors came rushing in the room looking back and forth between brothers trying to understand what had occurred as they rushed to save Alexis's life. Sonny gripped onto Kristina's hand tightly as he ushered his sobbing daughter out of the room. As he met the person standing outside the door he was grateful for the first time in his life that a policeman was there even if it was one that he assumed had a crush on his wife.

"Cruz, please take my daughters Molly and Kristina down to the cafeteria."

Kristina who didn't understand what was going on had started to sob louder and said, "Daddy, what's wrong with Mommy? Why can't we see Mommy? What did the beeping of the machines mean? Daddy?"

Sonny who was on the verge of tears himself didn't know how to respond and even if he could so he was grateful when Cruz picked her up in his arms and said, "Come on girlfriend Mommy's going to be fine, let's go the cafeteria, we'll talk there and then you and Molly can tell me how your day was."

Ric started to protest as Sonny transferred the quiet Molly to Cruz's arms and held Kristina's hand as they disappeared down the hall. Sonny silenced him with a glare as he entered back into the hospital room knowing that whatever was happening he needed to be a part of. Sonny breathed a sigh of relief as he entered the hospital room to see Monica and Alan still working feverishly over Alexis who was still flat lining.

'Charging at 300'

Sonny flinched as he watched the paddles force Alexis's upper body to jump; he felt the shock to his very core. He walked forward and Monica stopped her motions and noticed that he was in the room for the first time, "Sonny, you can't be in here. Leave."

Sonny ignored her directive as he walked forward and started pleading and begging with the inert woman on the bed, "Fight Alexis, fight damn it. You don't have the option of giving up."

Monica sighed; she knew that trying to get him out of the room now would be next to impossible so she ignored his presence as she worked on the task ahead of her, which was saving Alexis's life.

'Charging at 350'

Alexis's body jumped again as they stared at the monitor which still read nothing and Monica checked her watch and prepared to utter the words that would call an end to this tragedy, when Sonny shook his head as he started to yell at Monica, "Damn don't you do it Monica. Don't you dare say those words!"

He ran over to the side of the bed and knelt down next to her and whispered in her ear while grabbing her hand tightly, "Alexis, I love you. Your girls love you, you don't get this option. This option is for quitters only and after everything you are not a quitter, Alexis damn it don't you leave me. Alexis, please, I'm begging you and you know that I don't beg for anything…."

Monica sighed as she looked at the monitor which still showed flatline even as the broken man in front of her continued to whisper words of love in her ear and gripping onto her hand for dear life as she said, "Time of…."

She was cut off from finishing her sentence by a heartbeat suddenly appearing on the screen announcing to the world that Alexis was still with them even as her body jerked from the bed gasping for breath even while unconscious. The tears starting to roll down from Sonny's cheeks without letup as he realized that she was still alive and for a moment, that heart-pounding fear that he would be forced to raise Molly and Kristina alone no longer existed. He smiled through his tears as he pressed kisses to her face and said, "That's right sweetie, you keep on fighting. That's right, keep fighting and you can just go back to sleep, while I handle everything here. Just go back to sleep sweetheart, I'm here. Sonny's here."

Monica looked at the gangster standing in front of her and opened her mouth but no words would come out. Alexis had been moments away from being pronounced clinically dead when some whispered words of love from this man had brought her back from the brink of death. She knew love like that, she had love like that and she envied that the man who had caused her family so much pain had found it with the woman lying in the bed.

Sonny stared at Monica who he knew wanted more answers but he had other priorities at the moment, namely his brother Ric and how he was going to handle him.

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Sonny exhaled a deep breath as he stepped outside of Alexis's room and closed the door behind him while sending up a silent prayer of thanks. He opened his eyes and stared at his brother who was standing in front of him with a look of glee, one that he was more the happy to wipe off, "She's alive. It didn't work. Your little demented plan of leaving me to raise two young girls alone didn't work. She fought you and she fought your words, she's alive."

Ric's smile faltered for a moment, as if not believing what he had just uttered and then he shook his head trying to coax himself into believing what he had seen, "She was clinically dead. She flatlined, there's no coming back from that; she's gone you just don't want to admit it."

Sonny smirked as he watched the crestfallen face appear on his brother's face and said, "I just told her that she had more to live for than listening to your idiotic words. Now, we need to get a couple of things straight because you've been under some mistaken impressions and it's about time, I clear those up. Alexis and my daughters are off limits to you."

"Sonny?"

Sonny stopped when he saw Sam standing outside of Alexis's hospital room with her hand shaking. He hadn't realized she had come up behind them and was now staring into her mother's room where a room full of doctors was still attending to her, "Is Alexis….."

Sonny pulled Sam away from the door and into his arms, "It was a scare nothing else. We got her stabilized and they are going to page her doctor to let us know how she's doing. How did you find out and get her so quickly?"

Sam sighed she didn't want to focus on her presence instead that of the man standing in front of her, she looked at Ric, "What's he doing here? I was on my way to the hospital anyway but then Cruz called me on my cell phone and said that I should get down here as quick as I could. What happened?"

Sonny motioned to his brother who was sitting on the edge of the chair looking frightened, "Alexis's ex-husband decided to whisper threatening words in her ear and they must've affected her because she flat-lined. Fortunately, my daughters and I were just coming to visit my wife and their mother and were able to stop the effects from getting out of hand."

Sam launched herself angrily at Ric while Sonny grabbed her around the waist pulling her away from killing Ric as he said, "It's not worth it Sam."

Sam looked at him in shock, not understanding how he could even say that and asked, "How can you say that? My mother could've died because of this bastard and you are just standing there like nothing happened."

Sonny let her go as he reasoned that she was right, he didn't want his brother to live another moment but he knew that with his daughters in this hospital he wasn't going to commit murder. Sam, furious launched herself at Ric and started throwing blows across any place she could reach while Sonny stood back and watched the show in interest.

"Corinthos, you think you could've kept these two apart?"

Sonny stood back as Cruz pulled Sam physically off of Ric holding the enraged woman in his arms even as she struggled against her restraints to launch against him even though he was now sporting a black eye and a bloodied lip.

Sonny nodded and said, "Thanks Cruz, Ric let's go, it's time for us to talk. We are going to a public place and it will be your last appearance in Port Charles. Cruz, please look out for Sam and the girls until I get back."

Cruz looked at the man who was deadly calm and knew that as a officer of the law it was his duty to ensure that the man didn't commit a murder but for the life of him he couldn't force himself to do anything but watch as they left the hallway.

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Dr. Trent walked into Alexis's room and stopped as he watched the display in fascination. He hated to intrude on the moment but decisions need to be made. All three of her daughters were on her bed talking to her as if she was awake and responsive. Kristina was twirling her mother's hair around on her finger telling her about school while Molly crawled up and down her mother's body while Sam gripped her mother's hand in her own as the tears fell from her cheeks and she pressed frequent kisses to her knuckles. It was such a wonderful family moment that he was hesitant to interrupt but he saw Cruz meet his eyes and nod as he cleared his throat, "Sam?"

Sam looked up at the sound of her name being called as she met the doctor's gaze as she stroked her mom's hair and said, "What happened today Dr. Trent? How's my mother?"

Phillip walked to the edge of the bed and said, "We noticed a spike in brain activity right before she almost crashed. We thought we had lost her there for a moment but fortunately we were able to bring her back. I also think you can thank your step-father for that miracle; he apparently wouldn't let Alexis give up and told her to keep fighting. She did and she's here because of that. "

Sam shivered as she thought about how close she had come to losing her mother and she had been nowhere near, "And the pneumonia?"

Phillip opened the chart as he reviewed the results again and said, "We have almost eradicated the pneumonia from her lungs and we are looking at keeping her in a coma for two more days maximum but I did want to speak with you and your mother's husband about our next course of action."

Sam opened her mouth to say she didn't know where Sonny was and she didn't want to try to get in contact with him even as Kristina looked up from her position on her mother's side and said, "Where's my Daddy Sam?"  
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Sonny leaned back in his chair as he stared at his brother from across the table as he struggled to keep his temper under control and not wrap his hands around his brother's neck and squeeze the life out of him, "How many chances were you given Ric? I mean, can we sit here and count them on our fingers and tell me how many chances did I give you, how many times did I spare you from death just because of the blood that courses through your veins that is in part my own? I think it was one time too many. What you did today is why we are here, you have one hour to disappear from Port Charles. The next time I see you in this town again, my men will have the orders to kill on sight."

Ric flinched even as he heard the cold, unforgiving tone in his brother's voice said, "And my daughter? Molly, what about her? Do you really think I'm just going to walk away from her and not see her again?"

Sonny grimaced, he dared to speak of Molly when he had happily tried to murder her mother and said, "You had a chance to be a good father to Molly but you chose to be a selfish sonofabitch who was more concerned about himself that what Molly could possibly think about you murdering her mother. Molly is my daughter now and Alexis is my wife so you have no ties to anything here. You will leave, there's nothing left for you here."

Ric scowled as he leaned forward enraged that he had gotten Alexis to be his wife, "How did you maneuver that one Sonny? Did you tell her that her marrying you would protect Molly from my clutches? She wouldn't have married you if she had been in her right mind."

Sonny laughed, he didn't know how many times he had heard that from people he leaned forward, "Lately people seem to be under the impression that a cancer diagnosis is also a term to mean that you aren't in full control of your faculties but I can assure you that, nothing could be further from the truth. We married because we love each other and we will stay married because of that. You and your sick, perverted lies don't work here anymore. Molly is my daughter now and I will do everything in my power to pretend you don't exist in her life and if you ever step foot into Port Charles again, you won't live to say anything."

Ric leaned forward as he slammed his fist on the table, "You can't do that to me Sonny. She's my child and she belongs with me. She is not going to have to suffer because you and Alexis don't love her as much as you love Kristina. I've been a party to how Alexis singles out Kristina over Molly, and I don't want her to live thinking she's second best in her mother's life."

Sonny growled as the man in front of him dared to insult the woman he loved and the most exemplary mother he had ever been witness to said, "Molly is just as much my daughter as is Kristina, Ric. Molly is just as important to me as my daughter with Alexis and nothing is going to change that and Alexis has never, **never** singled out Kristina over Molly, she loves her girls equally including Sam. I love Michael just like I love Molly, she belongs to me and I keep what's mine. You made your last mistake here today and if you are smart you will never step foot into Port Charles again. I've warned you, one foot and my men have orders to shoot on sight and I won't have a problem telling Alexis that I was forced to kill you in self-defense."

Ric scowled, "You and your self-righteous attitude. What the hell about Alexis? She is the mother of my child and Molly is my daughter and you are trying to push me out of their lives because you suddenly decide that everything is better with Alexis? You don't get to make this choice, this late in the game."

Sonny stood up as he pulled out his wallet and paid the check, "You set the rules of this game today Ric. You had a choice to possibly still be in your daughter's life but trying to kill Alexis, that's a strike out for you. I won't protect you anymore and if Jason wants to kill you then I'll let him. But don't come within five feet of my wife or my daughters or so help me you will never live to see another day and I will personally back up that threat."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&  
_She was floating, she didn't know where she was but she wanted to go back to that reality she had been living before everything went black. Michael had been in love with her, Kristina had been alive and Samantha had been by her side. Helena was dead, murdered by her father for killing her mother and the hell that she had suffered at Stavros's hands didn't exist because Mikkos and Stefan insured that Helena's influence didn't have any lasting effects. _

_There was no Kristina, no Molly, no Nikolas but there was no pain there either. Sonny looked at her like she was the only woman in his world and she was happy. _

_She felt herself land suddenly as she shot up at the pain in her chest and then laid back down, breathing heavily. She closed her eyes trying to regain her balance as she heard the door open but she didn't open her eyes, she didn't know where she was but it didn't feel right. She opened her eyes slowly as she noticed her surroundings, she was being held prisoner. She was tied up in a dungeon. She looked at the person who entered the room and then backed against the wall in terror. _

"Stavros."

* * *

I said drama and angst didn't I:) 


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

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Sonny exhaled a deep breath trying to regain his composure after the meeting with his brother. He had to go home and shower before returning to the hospital, the stench of being anywhere near the man that had almost taken his wife from him had made him want to vomit. He looked towards the bed as he entered Alexis's hospital room and saw Sam holding onto Alexis's hand while stroking her hair. He sighed as he looked at the monitor and saw that she was still breathing steadily. As he looked around he noticed the lack of his girls.

He cleared his throat and said, "Sam where are Molly and Kristina?"

Sam looked up as she swiped the tears on her cheeks and said, "I had Cruz take them home. It was too much for them to deal with and I knew you were coming here so I decided to wait for you."

Sonny nodded as he walked over to the side of the bed and pressed a kiss to Alexis's forehead and then sighed as he took a moment to thank whatever deities existed for giving Alexis another chance by his side. He pulled back and the pulled the chair to the side of the bed and took her other hand, "So what did the doctor say?"

Sam was transfixed at the sight of her sleeping mother so she didn't immediately process his question until a moment later, "Dr. Trent wants to talk to us alone about Alexis. He needs to know how we are going to proceed."

Sonny nodded as he squeezed her hand and pressed a kiss to her knuckles, "I don't know if I've ever been more frightened and enraged at the same time. I was going to kill him and if it wasn't for the fact that Molly was on my hip, I might have. It took all inside of me to let him leave Port Charles horizontally instead of vertically like I would've preferred."

Sam laughed softly, "I think we all would've preferred Ric not leaving Port Charles alive. How could he Sonny? How could he? She's the mother of his daughter and he told her to die, I just don't…."

Sonny sighed and shook his head, "He's my brother by blood only but I'll never understand why he does the things he does. There are no words for what he was trying to do, but it doesn't matter anymore because he won't be here to cause Alexis or our daughters anymore pain. Alexis is going to be alright Sam, and then she's going to come back to you and I and the girls."

Sam nodded as she turned back to the bed and said, "Sonny, I know."

Sonny exhaled a deep breath and didn't question her statement instead uttered one of his own, "You know what Sam?"

Sam stroked her mother's hair again and said, "I know that Alexis is more than I could ever hope for in a mother. I know that she is the reason that I will be better, she's given so much of herself and all I've given her back is attitude. I saw the papers on your desk."

Sonny mused on her statement and then flinched when he realized that he had let Alexis down again, "Sam that was supposed to be a surprise."

Sam shook her head and said, "I think if I had been surprised with the memorial after the fact it would've killed me, this way I have time to reflect on her sacrifices and make myself over to face the future."

Sonny was curious about her words when Dr. Trent opened the door and entered the room.

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_"Stavros?" _

_The figure that had once been cloaked in the darkness stepped into the light and Alexis flinched against the wall as she looked into the tormentor from her childhood and cringed against the wall in fear. _

_Stavros walked closer and said, "Did you really think you could block me out as well? I know that your brain has allowed you to forget that you saw my mother murdering yours but did it also let you forget the fun that we used to have?" _

_Alexis shook her head trying to rid herself of the memories as she shook her head, 'You are dead and what's buried in my mind will stay buried. You will never get another chance, to break me. You won't get another chance to cause me any harm." _

_Stavros stepped forward as he caressed her cheek and Alexis wilted against the wall in fear as she spat at the hand that touched her face, "Don't touch me, Stavros. Leave me alone." _

_Alexis was suddenly jerked off her feet as she was dragged into his arms as Stavros whispered in her ear, "We are going to take a trip down memory lane, cousin. I promise you that it won't be fun, for you that is." _

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Dr. Trent walked forward as he looked at Sonny and Sam and spoke softly, "Her brain activity has been heightened ever since the episode with her ex-husband this morning. We are trying to administer the last of the antibiotics but her body seems to be fighting them. It's like she warring within herself and it's affecting her physical health."

Sonny sighed as he looked towards the bed where Alexis lay seemingly asleep but god knows what was going on within her head. He turned back to the doctor and said, "So what do we do? What's our next step? We can't let her continue in this state if it's not doing any good."

Sam sighed and said, "Do you think she's having nightmares? Maybe whatever Ric told her is messing with her mind and she doesn't know how to let it go."

Sonny looked at the doctor and said, "This woman has been through more in a lifetime than three men should have to experience. She saw a woman slit her mother's throat, she was then whisked off to the same island and forced to live under this woman's care that constantly made her life a living hell. When she finally rose above all that and created the persona of Alexis Davis, she is forced to remember her past and her sister Kristina and the murder of her mother. All of this is just a 1/8 of what she's had to live with, if she's dreaming and its nightmares we have to pull her out of the coma."

Sam gasped in shock, she had never heard the full details of whatever Alexis had been forced to endure but to hear that her grandmother had been murdered in front of her helpless mother was too much. She turned to the bed as the tears started springing anew and she shook her head as she pulled her mother's hand into her own, "What did I do Mom?"  
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_"I don't want to remember, let me go." _

"Alexis?"

_"You will remember our time together and you will remember everything we were to each other, since you have such a brilliant mind then you should be able to also block out the father of your daughter, but I'm here to unlock the door to your mind. You have always compartmentalized everything in your life and this is one thing that needs to come out, you have to remember." _

_Alexis shook her head as she started jerking away from her tormentor and said, "No, I don't want to remember. You can't make me, stop it." _

"Alexis, honey wake up. Come on, Sam and I are here we just want to see your pretty eyes. Come on sweetheart."

_Alexis jerked back as Stavros's face morphed into that of Stefan as she sighed in relief, "Stefan, you've come to save me. I knew you would, you always were my savoir." _

_Stefan smiled softly at first and stroked her face as he spoke, "Little one," then his smile started shifting into another tormentor, "Helena?" _

"Alexis, sweetheart, you are making this harder than it has too. Just open those eyes, we are right here. Come on Alexis."

"Mom, I'm begging you please, just open your eyes so we can stop worrying. Mom!"

_"Do you think I've allowed your residence on this planet for nothing? Everything I do has a price Alexis, and the time has come for you to pay yours."  
_&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny flinched as he watched Alexis's body jerk back and forth. Sonny looked towards the doctor and said, "Why is this happening? Shouldn't she be awake by now?"

Dr. Trent nodded and said, "Her brain activity is abnormally high, we need to wake her up at any costs. She could cause herself serious damage if she continues fighting the medication."

Sam stepped forward as the machine monitoring Alexis's vitals went haywire again and Sonny cradled Sam in his arms as she started crying, "Mom, come on please. I need you here so I can make up all of my mistakes, please don't leave me."

Sonny felt the tears fall from his face as Sam tried to rush forward as the doctors were pushing him out of the room and into the hallway. The door closed behind them loudly and they both flinched from the effect.

Sonny let Sam go as he slid against the door with a tortured sigh, "What is going on in there?"

Sam shuddered on a sigh as she looked at the door and then at Sonny, "She doesn't deserve for it to end like this Sonny. She doesn't deserve death, and not after everything. Not after fighting for everything she has been through and what she still has to live for."

Sonny closed his eyes as he felt the tears start to spring to his eyes. He turned towards the door and spoke softly, from his heart to hers and prayed that she could hear him, "Fight Alexis, fight for us sweetheart."

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"Alexis come on you've come this far." Monica tried CPR again as she checked the monitor for any signs of a heartbeat….

_"Damn it Alexis, why do you always channel all your negative energy this way?" _

_Alexis looked up as she stood peering into the hospital room at her body and said, "What am I doing here Kristina? I want to go home, with you and Samantha. Everything was so much better there, you, me, Samantha and Sonny, we were a family." _

_Kristina shook her head as she wrapped her sister in a warm embrace, "That was a dream, an alternate reality if you will. There wasn't a Kristina or a Molly or even a Sonny and after everything that you've been through you deserve all of that and so much more. Walk back into your life, walk back into the arms of the man that you love and try to piece a relationship with your daughter together. Make every second count." _

_Alexis looked at herself as Monica peered at her watch and shook her head, "I'm scared. I have made so many mistakes in my life that I'm afraid that nothing I do will ever be enough. I want to go back with you." _

_Kristina scowled and said, "Darn you are stubborn, Alexis. Sonny and Sam and your daughters need you. They need you to be there to guide them, to love them and if you leave now, they won't ever be the same. Don't lose your strength now, not when its one of the things that I always admired about you." _

_Alexis sighed as the tears started welling in her eyes, "I miss you so much Kristina. Not a day goes by when I don't think of you. I think of you and I remember you and I miss you. You were given to me as a gift after all of the pain I suffered at Helena's hands and I didn't treasure you like I should've. Please, forgive me." _

_Kristina pressed a gentle kiss to her brow and said, "Alexis, there was never anything to forgive. You are my sister and I love you. I wish I could've been with you longer, you have to know that my love for you is eternal and I'm watching over you and my nieces from heaven." _

_Alexis nodded as she held onto her sister's embracing her not waiting to wake up and she not be there. Kristina pulled back and pushed her sister in the middle of her back, "Go back now. Everyone's waiting and you have so much more to do and remember love is everything. You now know what love really means and you will never take it for granted again." _

_Alexis nodded as she felt her body jump and she was pulled back away from the peaceful place that had been her haven only moments before. _

"Alexis?"

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The door opened and Sonny knew his life would never be the same if they came out and pronounced Alexis dead. Yes, he would have to go on, for Kristina, for Molly and even for Sam but the light in his days would be forever extinguished. The laughs that he had shared with the woman he never thought himself worthy of would be gone and he would be alone again. He could find comfort in anyone but they weren't his soul mate no matter how many times he tried to make over his past women, they could never fill the void that Alexis left. It had something to do with the fact that she saw the real him and she knew how to see past his bluster and call him on every act. Maybe it was one of the reasons he had been so quick to push her out of his life, when in doubt go for the convenient and even as complicated as Carly had been she had been more convenient than truly giving his heart back to the rightful owner.

He exhaled a breath and found it was hard to breathe when he didn't know the outcome of what had happened in the room.

Monica pulled off the gloves as she looked at both Sam and Sonny who were waiting on bated breath for word of Alexis, "She's okay. It was almost a close call there but we were able to save her. She's resting now and I suggest you two do the same. We gave her a mild sedative so she should sleep through the night."

Sonny stepped forward as the same time as Sam as they both looked at each other sheepishly and then Monica in question. Monica shook her head, they were predictable, "Yes you can see her but I'm warning you that you need to take sometime for yourself. This is just the beginning as I'm sure Dr. Trent told you. This procedure will now need to be followed up by chemotherapy. Go home, to your own bed. She can be alone."

Sonny flinched at her choice of words that he remembered hearing Alexis utter years before, _'I can be alone. I do alone just fine.' _

Sonny turned to Sam and said, "She does alone and she will be fine but not tonight. Tonight her husband will be by her side to guard her dreams. Go home and tuck your sisters' in and make sure that the horror that Kristina dealt with today has no lasting effects."

Sam opened her mouth to protest but thought better of it, her mother did love Sonny no matter what she told to other people and right now she needed the consolation of the man that loved her. She would have plenty of time to make amends for all of her mistakes against her mother.

Sam nodded and said, "Call me if there's any change or if she wakes up. I don't care what time it is."

Sonny smiled and said, "I'll do that but I don't know if she's expected to wake up anytime soon.":

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Next Morning

Sonny had spent a fitful night beside his wife's bed watching her for any signs of discomfort or nightmares. Fortunately, she didn't flinch even once and he didn't know whether to be grateful or afraid that she was lost in her own dreams.

The door opened as Monica walked in and leaned against the door and said, "The fact that she's still sleeping is good. Sonny, you might not listen to me but why don't you go home, eat breakfast, shower and then come back? If she wakes up we can call you or Sam and you can be here within 15 minutes at the most. Don't exhaust yourself, you still have a fight on your hands and this is only the beginning."

Sonny shook his head and said, "I'm not leaving Monica but thank you."

Monica sighed as she looked at the man she was torn between loathing for her son Jason's sake and the compassion that as a doctor she was obligated to feel, "Sonny, she had a good night. Dr. Trent brought me up to speed on her case and in reviewing her charts, she had a peaceful night, no apparent nightmares, so you can rest easy."

Sonny looked back to the head as he stroked her hair and said, "I know she didn't have any nightmares, I was here insuring that she didn't. She worried about Kristina, Molly, Sam and me; she was worried she was going to leave us alone."

Monica gaped at him in shock, as she stepped forward too intrigued to deny herself the possibility to question the seemingly absurdity of his comment, "Sonny, she's sleeping. Her chart didn't show she woke up at all last night, how do you know what she dreamed?"

Sonny stopped stroking as he looked up at her and smiled, "I dreamed with her Monica. I held her hand as we walked the beach in Puerto Rico. She told me about her fears, her worries and her hopes for the future."

Monica closed her eyes as she listened to the man in front of her talk about the woman who to the world appeared to be almost comatose, "Sonny, I'm not going to argue with you about Alexis. I just want to know how your marriage will affect Jason."

* * *

I hadn't heard from Monica for awhile on the show so I decided to have her make an guest appearance. 


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

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Sam reached over the table to stick a spoon in Molly's mouth that graced her with a smile of thanks. Sam looked at Kristina who was staring into her food stirring her spoon around and sighing. Sam put the spoon down and focused on her sister, "Kristina, what's wrong sweetheart?"

Kristina looked up and said, "Mommy's really sick huh Sam? Is she going to die?"

Sam flinched as she heard the dejected tone in her sister's voice, "No Kristina, why would you think that?"

Kristina looked up at her sister with tears in her eyes and said, "Mommy didn't wake up. Daddy didn't come home last night and Uncle Ric is gone. Why is Mommy still sleeping? Daddy said she was going to wake up. I miss her and Molly does too."

Molly showed her acceptance of the statement but slapping the spoon on her tray and sending it flying across the room. Sam turned to her baby sister in shock as she grinned at the look of mischief showing on her face.

Sam leaned towards her and said, "I have an idea, why don't you eat your breakfast. Then Molly, you and I will go to the hospital and visit Daddy and Mommy? How does that sound?"

Kristina smiled for the first time since coming down the stairs and said, "Thanks Sam, I love you."

Sam felt the tears in her eyes as she listened to how easy her sister rolled the sentiment off her tongue as she pulled her into her arms and said, "I love you too sweetheart, I love you too."

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Sonny looked up at Monica suddenly distracted from the watch over his wife and said, "What are you talking about Monica?"

Monica fidgeted at the door and suddenly her plan to approach the mobster seemed faulty, "Sonny, I don't know Alexis well, I admit I stayed away from her after her leaving Ned at the altar and other fights but she changed after her sister Kristina died. She became focused on ensuring that crime didn't go unpunished, it was part of the reason that you two split up and if you are going to be married to her then I can't see her staying with you in your current 'job' situation."

Sonny scowled as he looked at the doctor who had saved his wife's life more than once but was now questioning his actions, "Look Monica, what happens between Alexis and I is our business. What does this have to do with Jason?"

Monica felt her anger start to get the better of her and Sonny stood up and followed her outside of the room. He turned at the last minute to lean over and press a gentle kiss to Alexis's lips and whisper something in her ear that she wasn't privy to before he followed her outside.

"What does Jason have to do with my marriage to Alexis Monica? Why do you even care?"

Monica crossed her arms as she stared at Sonny and said, "Sonny, let's not mince words. When you were married to Carly, you weren't with a woman who wanted the best for you. She wanted the best for her and her lifestyle. Alexis is the type of woman that will want the best of you, for you and for her family and the best thing for her family is for you to be out of the mob, far away. And if for some reason you actually do get out of the mob, where does that leave my son? Will Jason have to take over the territory again and I have to worry day after day whether this will be the day I get a call that he's been shot or will you protect him like you are planning to do for yourself and your family?"

Sonny shut his mouth as he looked towards the hospital room door and saw Alexis still sleeping peacefully. He wished for some of her calmness to be imparted to him as he began to speak, "When Monica, and I do mean when because I plan on leaving my current job, Jason comes with me. Jason has been more of a brother to me than Ric has ever been and I wouldn't force him to be my successor if he didn't want to, and he doesn't. He loves Sam, and he wants to be with her and he thinks the best way he can do that is if he leaves this lifestyle."

Monica smiled, pleased with Sonny's answer and said, "I guess I should've known."

Sonny looked at her in question and said, "Should've known what?"

Monica looked towards the door to where Alexis was slowly blinking her eyes open and she motioned to the room and said, "Alexis Davis and Sam McCall, they have to be related. They are the only women who have been able to touch your hearts so deeply that you will give up everything for them."

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"Cruz? What are you doing here?"

Cruz stopped as he looked at Sam was bent over Kristina tying her shoes as she was getting her ready for their trip to the hospital as he reached for Molly who graced him with a grin and said, "What are you guys up to? I thought after yesterday, you could all use a distraction and since, I'm off work today I thought we could all go to the park or the zoo."

Kristina started jumping up and down in excitement and said, "Can we go to the zoo? Molly hasn't been yet and Daddy could come with us, and we could all go together."

Sam smiled gratefully at Cruz as she turned to her sister and said, "Kristina, I thought you wanted to see Mommy in the hospital."

Cruz looked as a pout came across Kristina's face similar to the ones he had seen resident on Sam's face and said, "There's no reason we can't do both, we can go to the hospital and go to the zoo. But first things, first I don't take any pouting girlfriends with me."

Kristina's pout magically disappeared as the idea of an outing with one of her favorite guys lit up her face, "I'm not pouting."

Sam sat back as she watched Cruz effortlessly interact with her sister making her forget all about the horror that she had lived through last night. She took her sister Molly out of his arms and said, "So Cruz it seems like you have a full schedule, are you ready to get started?"

Cruz smiled at Sam and said, "Ready and willing, let's go."

As the makeshift family exited the Corinthos compound, they were focused on the events of the day ahead and not the horror of the night past.

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Sonny had been pacing around Alexis's room for the last twenty minutes. Her doctor had come in and had been shocked that Alexis still remained asleep which started concerning him. The doctors had been adamant that there was no reason to be concerned until they gave him a reason to be concerned but he knew, he knew that whatever demons Alexis was fighting she didn't know how to break free from their hold and return to the people who so desperately needed her.

Sonny exhaled a breath as he sat down and looked at her sleeping peacefully before he took her hand into his own and released a short puff of air as he laid his forehead on her knuckles and started speaking, "Alexis, please wake up. I know that you're scared, I know that you think that it won't be easy the fight you have ahead of you but I'm by your side and I won't let anyone take you away from me. I promise you, please just open your eyes and put an end to this nightmare, please."

Sonny exhaled a sigh as he looked up and noticed that nothing had disturbed the tranquility that she currently had. He didn't know how he was going to force her to awaken but he knew he needed to do it soon and for his shake he hoped that he was successful. He stood up and walked to the door when he heard a commotion from the bed. He spun around and was relieved to see Alexis blinking her eyes open slowly.

He sprinted over to the bed as he gripped her hand in his own and started to coax his sleeping bride awake, "Alexis, sweetheart, that's it baby. Come on back to me. Come on back to me."

He was rewarded with his gentle prying when she suddenly opened her eyes and met his with a smile filled with happiness.

He sighed in relief as he pressed a hard kiss to her lips before jumping back in the chair and reaching for the phone near the bed. He started to call her doctor when her next words stopped him dead in his tracks, "Michael can you get my sister Kristina for me please?"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sam stopped in her tracks as she saw Jason conversing with Elizabeth Webber quietly about something as she came up on the pair. She cleared her throat as she clutched her sister's hand tightly in her own refusing to name what was in front of her as she said, "Jason, Elizabeth is everything okay?"

Jason and Elizabeth broke apart guiltily and Sam felt a sharp pain hit in her heart as she realized that she was privy to a conversation that had to do with a secret she was obviously hiding, "What were you two so deep in conversation about?"

Jason opened his mouth to answer when Kristina tugged on her sister's hand drawing her attention to her and said, "Sam, Molly and Cruz are waiting for us, we need to go."

Kristina smiled at Jason and Liz and said, "We are going to the zoo with Cruz and Molly. We are going to have a picnic after we visit Mommy and Daddy."

Jason looked at Sam as he couldn't hide the hurt that shimmered behind his eyes at the thought of her having fun without him but Sam met his gaze with a cool one of her own as she looked over the pair and squeezed her sisters hand and said, "We need to go Kristina. Goodbye Jason."

She nodded to Jason and Elizabeth as she walked away from the pair with her head held high even though her heart was in her throat.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Cruz looked up as Sam and Kristina entered the cafeteria and made their way over to the table he had commandeered by flashing his dimples and his badge and sat down. He looked at Sam and wondered about the pain in her eyes but his question was answered when Kristina smiled as she saw them and said, "We just saw Jason and Elizabeth."

Sam sat down as she helped her sister get into the chair and looked towards her sister who was happily sipping on her juice and said, "So I guess you are waiting on us to go see Mom and Dad huh?"

Cruz shrugged and said, "I was waiting on you two. I didn't really know what you would want to do in regards to visiting your mother, whether you went in first and cleared it with Sonny and the doctors or just walked in with Kristina and Molly so I thought seating at a table until I heard further info was the way to go."

Sam rolled her eyes as she smiled at him and said, "Don't worry about it; I actually do want to talk with Sonny before I bring the girls up. I don't want another repeat of Ric."

Sam leaned over and pressed a kiss to her sister's head and said, "Kristina, I'll be right back. I need to go ask your Dad something about our trip and then we can all go and see Mom. What do you say?"

Kristina grinned and said, "Okay, but hurry back. I don't want to miss the animals at the zoo."

Cruz laughed as Sam walked away.

* * *

I think next chapter will be the last one before a brief epilogue. 


	18. Chapter 18

New Beginnings, Final Chapter

Note: So I have had this chapter typed for awhile but I was pondering when to post it and today seemed  
like a good day so here ya go...I'm typing an epilogue but I don't know when that will be ready in the meantime,  
I'm starting on another story hopefully you can see that soon too.

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"Michael, did you hear me honey? I want to see my sister Kristina and call Samantha while you're at it, I'm sure she's worried about me too."

Sonny flinched as he listened to the matter of fact tone in her voice as he walked towards the bed and sat in the chair in shock, she didn't know who he was or at least who he was now. She was obviously confused if she was calling for her dead sister Kristina, but she had also asked for Samantha her daughter so she had to be somewhat coherent.

Sonny reached for the call button for the nurse and pressed it as he held Alexis's hand in his own. The door opened up slowly as Sam stuck her head in the door and looked towards the bed with a smile.

She opened the door fully and stepped into the room. She hadn't given much thought to her clothing that day and had just pulled on a pair of jeans and an old-sweatshirt and as she walked in the room she saw Alexis looked at her in confusion, "Samantha, where are you glasses?"

Sam looked at Sonny for an explanation but he shook his head as if silently warning her not to press and she shrugged slightly and said, "I left them at home."

Alexis nodded as if satisfied with that answer and said, "And Kristina? I know your aunt has to be terrified that I could be seriously ill but I'm fine and once I get out of this hospital we can all go home and forget about this."

Sam closed the door behind her as she looked at her mother sitting up in the bed while sending Sonny smiles and her face full of love. Sam cleared her throat and said, "Kristina, my aunt?"

Alexis sighed in exasperation as she looked at her daughter and said, "Of course your aunt silly. I know that I helped you stay up all last night working on your thesis, but you can't have forgotten your aunt already can you? Samantha, come closer sweetie, I need to discuss something with you."

Sonny shook his head as he motioned for Sam to take a seat and as she did she spoke softly, "Sure, what do you need to discuss with me?"

Sonny looked at Alexis in question, having no clue where her mind was or what could possibly come out of her mouth as she spoke she squeezed his hand and said, "Michael and I have been dating sweetie. And after he finds out the truth about my past, then we are going to get married, he asked me…."

Alexis stopped as Sam leaned forward and touched Alexis's hand softly, "He asked you what….."

Alexis jerked away as she shut her eyes and started to shake her head as if trying to rid herself of some horrible memory. Sonny stood up and cradled her in his arms as Sam ran and called for the doctor.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Alexis, look at me!"

Alexis shook her head as the realization that it was all a dream and she was back in the reality where her sister was dead and her family was fractured apart were running through her head. She didn't know where to go from here and she was scared that every path she turned to take would inevitably be the wrong one and cause more pain.

The sobs wouldn't stop wracking her body as she remembered the gentle smile of her sister staring at her or her daughter Samantha, who wore glasses and loose fitting clothes that loved her. She had been a good person, but now she was Alexis Davis again.

_The sinner._

_The saint._

_The hypocrite._

"Alexis?"

Alexis stopped crying as she heard the unfamiliar voice and peeked through her fingers at the face that was staring at her in worry, "Dr. Trent?"

Alexis let her hands fall down from her face as she looked at the doctor who only days before had told her that it was necessary that she be put into a medically induced coma was now staring at her as if he had made the worst mistake in his life, "Don't worry I'm not going to snap again. Did it work? Is the pneumonia gone?"

Dr. Trent exhaled softly in relief as he sat down next to her and said, "Yes, the pneumonia is gone but we are worried about your emotional stability and especially if we are going to be starting chemotherapy soon. Can you tell me what happened? What caused you to ask for people that are either dead or don't exist?"

Alexis shook her head as she felt the tears well in her eyes again, "I was just wishing for one moment that all of my sins weren't real, I slipped into a reality where I hadn't taken the lives of the people who loved me and depended on me and let them done."

Dr. Trent looked at the door and saw Sonny Corinthos and Sam McCall peering in the room worry stinging their eyes. Dr. Trent looked back at his patient who his first priority was too and he said, "Your husband and daughter are anxiously waiting to see you, what should I tell them?"

Alexis looked up and into the eyes of the man that she loved more than life itself and found she didn't have the strength to look away, their connection was still there and it would always be. With great force, she broke the connection and looked down before mumbling, "I want to see my daughters, all of them."

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Cruz stared at the man who was pacing the halls up and down which he had been doing for the last fifteen minutes only pausing briefly to stare inside the door before breaking away. He was hesitant to admit that the man made him nervous, he was tempted to stand up and stop him from pacing, but he knew that he was just exercising his nervous energy.

"Why doesn't she want to see me?"

Cruz looked up and realized that the door was still closed and no one was walking down the hall so the question must've been addressed to him. He cleared his throat and asked, "Were you talking to me?"

Sonny stopped his pacing and nodded waiting for a response, "Why doesn't she want to see me? What did I do wrong? I thought I did everything she wanted, she won't even let me in the room."

Cruz opened his mouth in awe but then quickly caught himself, he was staring at the most feared mob business man on the eastern seaboard but one cancer-ridden DA had the power to have him pacing like a teenager, it was both frightening and refreshing to see. Frightening in the sense that you wondered what would truly become of the family that Sonny and Alexis created if Alexis wasn't there to sustain Sonny and refreshing to know that the mob man did have a chink in his armor, a chink that was known as his wife.

"Sonny, I don't know much about Alexis but what I do know is that she's a mother first and foremost. Maybe she wants to see her children first to hold them in her arms for a little while."

Sonny scowled as he started pacing, not really content with the answer that he was just given but was trying to work around to the solution in his mind and said, "And that's all good but why can't I be in there with her?"

Cruz smirked as he looked at the man in front of him and said, "You might take away from the peace she wanted with her daughters, you're her husband and she's married to you but she's also a mother just be patient."

Sonny grimaced as he sat down next to Cruz and said, "I don't like to be kept waiting, she knows how impatient I am….once, she told me she was going to teach me how to become patient."

Cruz laughed as he looked at him and said, "Well we all see how well that worked out."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"I was so scared Mommy." Alexis stroked her daughter's face as she listened to the fear that was still resident in her daughter's voice and wanted to know the cause. She met her eldest eyes who nodded and said, "We were all worried Alexis. It was touch and go there at least twice and we were worried that we would have to live life without you. Fortunately for us, you decided to keep on fighting."

Alexis flinched as she looked down and Sam reached for her hand and held on to it tightly and said, "What's wrong?"

Alexis shook her head and said, "It's nothing, don't worry about it."

Sam squeezed tighter and dropped her voice, "Please tell me what's wrong?"

Alexis smiled and said, "I just thought I heard you call me Mom when we were trying to wake up but I guess I was still dreaming."

Sam sighed as she pressed a gentle kiss to her mother's knuckles and said, "Mom, it wasn't a dream. I didn't want to spring it on you without getting your consent first."

Kristina looked at her older sister, "But that's her name Sam, why wouldn't you call her Mommy?"

Sam snorted in laughter as Alexis touched Kristina on the shoulder and said, "Because Mommy wasn't always a good Mommy to your older sister Sam and she had to think about whether she was going to call me that name or not."

Sam pulled her sister Molly into her arms after noticing her mother unsuccessfully try to corral the unruly toddler; it was obvious she was not content with her surroundings she wanted to be moving. Sam juggled her even as she struggled to get away from her arms, looking for the man who had been resident in her life for the past couple of days.

Kristina watched in giggles as her eldest sister tried to calm Molly down and shook her head as she looked at her mother and then announced, "She just wants Daddy Sam. Go get Daddy and then Molly will be happy."

Alexis stopped as she looked at both of her daughters incredulously and said, "What do you mean Kristina?"

Sam grinned and said, "Mom, we have a lot to fill you in on."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny peered into the room and caught Molly's eyes who was starting to cry, he was debating on whether to enter the room or not but opened the door when Alexis nodded from the bed with a small smile and said, "It seems Molly misses her father."

Sonny felt something shift in the region of his heart as he realized that her words were full of mirth and not hatred as he had been imagining, he walked closer to where Sam was cuddling Molly trying to get her to hush unsuccessfully, "Hey now, none of that…," Molly stopped her sobbing as she caught sight of the man in front of her and struggled out of Sam's arms to throw herself into his.

Alexis felt the tears well in her eyes as she watched the two of them together, so seamlessly like they had never been strangers up until a couple of weeks ago. As soon as Molly was in Sonny's arms, the loud, angry sobs quickly quieted down to sniffles as she curled her arm around his neck and fell asleep.

Alexis watched the entire scene in silence refusing to break the obviously peaceful moment between the two even as she saw Sam looking at Sonny with a smile of acceptance and Kristina just grinning, "You did it."

Sonny had been focusing on the task at hand which was calming the sleepy toddler in his arms so when she first spoke, he didn't process the information it wasn't until it ran through his head again did he realize what she was referring to…"Of course I did it, you asked me to didn't you?"

Alexis looked down even as Sam started to pick up on the strange vibes from the two of them, "Why don't Kristina, Molly and I get going? Cruz is still outside waiting to take us to the zoo and we have a busy day."

Alexis's attention fell from the family picture that Sonny and Molly made at Sam's last statement, "Cruz? What about Jason?"

Sam opened her mouth and then Sonny said, "Why don't I take Molly and Kristina out for a moment so that you can have so time to talk to Sam?"

Sam smiled and said, "I would appreciate that Sonny."

Alexis nodded even while she gave Kristina a hug and kiss on her cheek and said, "I love you." Kristina hugged and kissed her back even as she refused to meet Sonny's eyes instead choosing to focus on the daughter in front of her.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sam fidgeted as she walked around the room wondering what her mother could possibly want to discuss with her…Was she going to take back her forgiveness offered so freely before the coma? Was she going to turn her back on her as she did all those years ago?

"Sam, I'm sorry."

Sam stopped pacing as she looked at her mother who was staring at her with saddened eyes and knew that she must be dreaming because she couldn't have done what she thought she didn't, "Why are you apologizing Mom?"

Alexis rolled her eyes as she looked at her with humility in their depths, "For acting like walking into your life 20 years too late, affords me the right to run it….I loved you from the moment I held you in my arms and even though I wasn't by your side watching you take your first step, cutting your first tooth and your first day of school I thought it didn't matter. I thought the moment I knew who you were I would be in your life, I didn't even focus on all of the history we had in the past, I only focused on the fact that I had my daughter. I think if I had stopped to process that I didn't have the right to run roughshod over your life, things would've turned out a lot differently."

Sam sat at the chair next to Alexis's bed and sighed sadly, "I don't want your apology Mom, I don't deserve it. The moment you found out that you were my mother you were nothing less than extraordinary my god, after everything we've been through you helped me so many ways and I just was focused on one thing, Jason. Jason was my only priority and he was my selfish longing, one that I should've given up years ago. Mom, I didn't even think of my sisters when I was sleeping with Ric because I was still so focused on Jason, what kind of mess does that make me? I don't want to be in a relationship where I'm dependant on the other person to make me happy, and being a part of a family with you and my sisters make me happy."

Alexis grimaced and said, "Now you are going to start me crying, hand me those tissues." Sam choked out a laugh through her tears as she handed her mother the box of tissues but not before taking a couple for herself and saying, "Mom, let's leave Jason in the past."

Alexis shook her head as she met her daughter's eyes, "I would love to leave Jason in the past, but I can't because Jason means a lot to you. You love Jason and I'm not that much of a hypocrite that I can't see how wrong it is for me to marry Sonny and then demand you leave Jason. I wouldn't do that to you, Sam. If you want to be with Jason, I want you to be happy."

Sam took her mother's hand and said, "I am happy, I will be happy and whether it's with or without Jason, it has nothing to do with you. You know there were a lot of problems with Jason and I that had nothing to do with you, his complete acceptance of anything that Carly does, and he supports her and loves her like no other. His devotion to Liz still irks me and I guess you were an easy scapegoat to focus on when we were apart but there were more issues."

Alexis reached for another tissue as she nodded and said, "You mean like my relationship with Sonny? I know that Carly is on the backburner while I'm in the hospital but once she knows that were married and that we're happy then I'm afraid I'll be back where I was once before."

Sam shook her head in negation of what her mother had just said, "Mom, Carly knows, she has known that you two were married before you went into the coma….She doesn't care, she's happy with Jax. Finally, I think she's found the one person who makes her life worth living and that person is Jax, she's happy and you can be happy too."

Alexis laid her head against the pillow and said, "Sometimes love isn't enough Sam. I don't know if Sonny and I can be together."

Sam stood up as she started stroking her mother's hair before leaning down to press a kiss in her hair and said, "You love Sonny, it's as simple as that. You have so much to look forward to, but you have to stop with this pessimism and focus on the fight ahead of you, and I'm not talking about the Carly's and Jax's of the world who will be livid that you married Sonny, I'm talking about the real fight, the fight for your life the fight to beat cancer. That's the only fight that has to be important to you right now. Everything else takes back burner."

Sam stepped back even as she saw the tears start to flow down her face and said, "I'm going to go with Cruz and the girls to the zoo."

Alexis nodded through her tears and then said, "Cruz?"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sonny patted Molly's back continuously as he struggled to pay attention to the excited voice of his daughter who was telling him of her plans for the day with her sister and her boyfriend. He couldn't wait to talk with Alexis about their daughter's _boyfriend._

"She'll be out soon Corinthos, hold your horses."

Sonny looked up at the man who he had once considered a rival but in the last couple of days had actually proven to be more of an ally than anyone he knew in dealing with Ric. He nodded as stopped patting when he heard the gentle snoring of Molly.

Cruz looked at the baby sleeping peacefully in Sonny's arms and wondered aloud, "Are we actually going to try to take her with us? I think she might have a fit if she's taken out of your arms."

Sonny looked down at the sleeping baby in his arms that had taken to him without a moment's thought and was pleased that he was in her life, "She'll be okay she'll be with her sisters Kristina and Sam. So I guess I should ask what you're intentions are towards Samantha?"

Kristina looked at her father puzzled as her inquisitive mind started working, "Daddy what are intintins? Are those for your hair? I think Carly uses those…."

Cruz muffled a laugh at Kristina's joke that she made without realizing and shook his head as he stood up and turned to Sonny, "You're the Dad, I'm just the boyfriend."

Kristina flashed him a dimpled grin as she looked back to her father, "Daddy, answer my question please."

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"Mom, not even a moment ago you were wallowing in self-pity and now you are curious about my love life?"

Sam laughed as she crossed her arms and walked to the edge of the bed and asked the question that had been plaguing her brain for the last couple of minutes, "Why don't you want to see Sonny? You know he's pacing outside like a madman but you are still refusing to give him the time of day, what did he do?"

Alexis shook her head, 'He didn't _do_ anything, I was just shocked that I woke up is all. I know, I know that I need to start thinking positive and I will, sometime soon but when I was sleeping, when I was worrying about whether I was leaving my family to their own problems, I dreamt….I dreamt I didn't screw up your life, my life and my sister's life. I was single and you were living with me and your Aunt Kristina in a penthouse, in Sonny's penthouse actually. I had done exactly what my mother asked of me and because I had, I was able to look my sister in the eyes, I had you by my side, you were called Samantha, you were glasses and you loved me….You didn't hesitate to hold me, hug me or call me Mom, there was no animosity, no history that could tear us apart….I wanted to stay in that world so badly but Kristina told me that I couldn't that I had to come back to be here for you, the girls and Sonny."

Sam stumbled towards the bed and said, "You were in another world and you still wanted me?"

Alexis felt the tears spring to her eyes as she curved her palm around her daughter's cheek and said, "I will always want you Sam. Always. I'm not good at it at times, I know it seems that I treat you like a disappointment but it's just my own insecurities coming through, I keep rationalizing if I try a little harder, if I'm a little more insistent than you will realize how much I really do love you and I always will? While giving you up, was one of the hardest things I ever had to do I never stopped loving you, you have to believe that."

Sam got choked up at the emotion in her mother's voice and said, "Don't worry I won't ever doubt that you love me ever again."

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Sam exited the room and looked at Sonny and Cruz who were locked in a battle of stares. Sam stepped forward slowly hesitant to interrupt the obviously tense confrontation and said, "Hey, Cruz you ready to go?"

Cruz broke away from the stare as he looked over at Sam and nodded and walked forward curious as to why her eyes were red-rimmed. He placed a gentle hand on her shoulder and turned to Kristina and said, "Hey you ready to go to the zoo now?"

Kristina nodded as she gave her Dad a kiss and ran into her sister's legs, "Are you and Mommy happy again?"

Sam bent down to her sister's level and nodded as she opened her arms and said, "Yea sweetheart, we are happy again."

She embraced her sister in a full hug and stood up as she met Sonny's eyes who were trained on her and the door behind her. Sam cleared her throat and said, "Mom wants to see you now…I told her we were going to the zoo and that she could have a couple of hours alone with her husband, anything after that is free game."

Kristina grinned from her position on her sister's hip as she watched the transfer of Molly from her father's arms to Cruz's. She leaned over and pressed a loud, smacking kiss to her father's lips and said, "We want to eat dinner tonight with you and Mommy. Can we?"

Sonny pressed a gentle kiss to his daughter's cheek and said, "Of course, it will be fun to have dinner wit all my girls.

Cruz walked forward and stared at the baby who was sleeping peacefully in Sonny's arms and was unsure on how to proceed, did he dare disturb her rest?

His question was answered as Sonny turned Molly into his arms as his eyes were focused on the door in front of him. The transition took no more than 15 seconds but it was long enough for Molly to notice that she was back in unfamiliar arms, her eyes opened even as Sonny was heading towards the door.

"Dadda."

Sonny stopped dead in his tracks at the sound of his name being called and not by Kristina, he spun on his heel and looked at the baby in front of him with a smile and then towards Cruz and Sam in confusion, "Did she just say….?"

Kristina was the one to break the silence as she said, "Yea Daddy, she knows you're our Daddy now. I told her. Can we go now?"

Gripping her sister and Cruz's arms she waved goodbye as they headed off to the zoo and he headed off to his destiny.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Hi."  
"Hi."

Sonny closed the door as he walked forward and sat down in front of the woman who had been surrounding his thoughts, sleeping and otherwise for the last couple of weeks.

He stared at her hands because he was too afraid to focus on her face and see something there that he wouldn't be able to handle the pain, regret. Regret that she had married him.

"Sonny?"

Sonny nodded as he looked up and met her eyes and felt his heart shatter in two, he saw regret, "What is it Alexis?"

Alexis felt the tears well in her eyes as she opened her mouth, "I'm sorry Sonny. I'm sorry I asked you to marry me."

Sonny felt as if someone had stabbed a knife in his chest and taken away his ability to breathe, "You're sorry we got married?"

Alexis coughed as she avoided staring him in the eye and said, "I'm sorry I dragged you into the middle of my family drama and you ended up paying the consequences. Sam told me about the hell she put you through, and even though she's apologetic I know it wasn't easy taken over the care of 2 young girls and fighting off my oldest daughter who at one time….."

Sonny couldn't help himself that even in the middle of a life changing argument he could still smile and have the need to say the word, "Breathe."

Alexis smiled and said, "You haven't had it easy these past couple of days."

Sonny sighed as he nodded, "I could lie and say it was a walk through the park but it wasn't. It had its moments but I don't regret marrying you Alexis, I could never do that."

Alexis sighed as she shook her head, "Not even about Carly? She's the love of your life right, she's everything I can never be and maybe for a moment I thought I could forget it but I can't. I can't play second fiddle to anyone every again, I did it with Ric and his obsession with you and I'm not prepared to relieve the pain of you and Carly again."

Sonny reached for her hand and said, "Where is this coming from? Why are you thinking about the past? Ric is out of our lives forever and Carly is with Jax and whether she's happy or not is no problem of mine, I'm happy right where I am."

Alexis couldn't stop the thoughts of insecurities from running through her head, "And can you be happy right here forever? I don't think I could take it if you decided to regret this marriage no matter how quickly it came about."

Sonny leaned forward and pressed his lips to her softly and his kissed away her tears and fears in the same moment, "I love you Alexis."

Alexis sighed as she pressed her lips against his and said, "I love you too Sonny. I always have, you were the one, the only one who got me, all of me and I missed that, I still do."

Sonny stood up as he pulled her into his arms as best as he could and kissed her on the top of his head and said, "You are my best friend and from the moment you walked out of my life so did everything good that you helped me to see and to be….All of the lessons you instilled in me, I let go and my life has been in chaos ever since."

Alexis smiled as she yawned against his chest and said, "You never listened to anything I said anyway but thanks for lying."

Sonny crawled into bed with his wife and said, "It sounds like someone has been running themselves ragged with the idea of this conversation."

He cradled her head against his chest as she started playing with the buttons on his shirt and said, "I was afraid you didn't want me anymore…..I've never been as vulnerable as when I'm with you, and it scares me. I'm not usually this vulnerable… "

Sonny squeezed her to him, knowing instinctively what she was referring to, they put on so many barriers to the world and the idea that someone could see past those barriers and see the person beneath the mask and still have the ability to hurt that person terrified her, it still terrified him at moments, "Promise me you won't hide…not from me Alexis. You can hide from anyone else and I'll even be a refuge for you but not me, I don't want you to feel as you have to hide from me, I'm not going anywhere."

Alexis had drifted off to sleep in the midst of his speech but he was confident that he could convince her of the sincerity of his words when she woke up.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

**Hours Later**

"Mommy?"

The door opened slightly as Kristina peeked her head in the door followed by Sam and Cruz who were looking at the bed trying to see what the state of the newlyweds were. Sam opened the door fully as she stepped in with a smile; she saw the two curled in each others arms. She was hesitant to enter the room but wasn't left with a choice when Kristina ran in the room with a grin and yelled to awaken both of her parents. Sonny was the first to awaken at the sound of his daughter calling his name, he had been too happy lost in his own dream world with his wife safely tucked in his arms. Sonny smiled as the group filed into the room with balloons, stuffed animals and joy in their faces. Alexis sighed as she snuggled into his neck deeper trying to get back her position so she could fall deeper into sleep when Sonny shook his head and started rubbing her back and kissing the top of her head.

"Alexis….sweetheart, we have company."

Alexis groaned and opened one eye as she stared at her husband crossly and said, "Sleep?"

Sonny kissed her on the head and said, "The girls are back."

Molly made her presence known as she reached for Sonny within moments of entering the room. Sonny smiled as he held out his arms for Molly who squealed excitedly as she was placed in his arms. Alexis kissed her daughter's hand as she reveled in the happy joy in her mother's face before turning to the other occupants of her room, "Kristina, did you have fun at the zoo with your sister and Cruz?"

Kristina nodded as she showed her mother the animals that she bought from the zoo, Alexis smirked at Cruz and Sam, "You two are such softies, Kristina has all of these and more at the house."

Cruz rolled his eyes as he stepped forward and said, "She stated that with each visit you need new animals and since I couldn't argue with that logic…."

Sam laughed as she coughed the word, "Pushover" under her breath to the shock of Alexis, Cruz and Sonny.

Alexis grinned and said, "So did you have fun Sam?"

Sam nodded as she stepped forward and stared at Cruz quickly before looking down and then at her mother, "I did Mom. Kristina had a ball even though I don't think Molly was too happy to realize that she wasn't going to be seeing Sonny anytime soon."

Molly humphed her agreement from her position in Sonny's lap as she grinned with glee as he continued to clap his hands and she kept swatting at the motion oblivious to everyone in the room.

Alexis turned her attention back to the officer who was now in her room as her eyes twinkled and she said, "Do I need to ask you what your intentions are towards my daughter?"

Sonny flinched as Kristina launched into another question, "Mommy, Cruz doesn't have any intintions, only Carly does but they change…..Daddy wouldn't explain it to me but why did you and Daddy ask Cruz if he had any intintions?"

Alexis muffled a laugh as she tried to pull a straight face and she looked to Sonny for guidance who shook his head with laughter in his eyes and said, "She's your daughter too."

Alexis rolled her eyes as she looked towards Sam who was backing against the door shaking her head, "Kristina, intentions are different from extensions….Intentions are like what does someone mean to do with another person and extensions are uhumm for the hair."

Kristina grinned as she looked at her family, grateful for the explanation and asked, "So Cruz what are you extensions towards my sister Sam?"

Cruz bit his lower lip as he struggled to keep a straight face as he bent down and came eye to eye with the gorgeous brunette who was currently tapping her foot awaiting a response to her inquiry, "My _intentions_ towards your sister are simple, but I don't know if you'll like them….I would have to break up with you first."

Kristina rolled her eyes as she looked at her mother and said, "Mom, when Cruz and I were boyfriend and girlfriend wasn't it just pretend?"

Alexis nodded even as she laid her head on her husband's arm as she curled up back into the position they once were as they watched the drama unfolding in front of them and said, "Yes Kristina, you told me that it was just pretend. You were trying to save Cruz from getting yelled at by the mean lady."

Sonny tapped his wife on the shoulder and said, "Speaking of, since when does my daughter pick up boyfriends at your job? If I knew that she was going to be subjected to that type of treatment then I would've kept her with me at work, coffee is at lot safer than picking up boyfriends at police headquarters."

Alexis smirked as she looked at her husband, "Alleged coffee importer?"

Sonny tightened his arms around her and said, "We are in mixed company, wife."

Alexis leaned back as she stared at Cruz and Sam eyeing each other from across the room and said, "I don't know how much longer the company will be mixed."

Kristina grinned as she turned back to her mother and said, "So if Cruz isn't my boyfriend anymore, what is he now?"

Sonny looked at the man who he at one time was worried who be a rival for his wife's actions was now his daughter's ex-boyfriend, the first of many he was sure. "I think you need to leave that decision up to Sam and Cruz don't you?"

Kristina turned on Cruz and said, "Okay, what are you now that you are my sister's boyfriend?"

Sam gasped and said, "Kristina, I don't recall saying yes….Cruz hasn't even asked me to be his girlfriend, besides what about Jason?"

A shadow fell over the room at the remembrance of the other man in Sam's life, the man who she admittedly had put on the backburner and who she still needed to deal with….Kristina pulled her sister's hands and said, "But you always smile when you're with Cruz and you look so sad when you are with Jason….I just want you to be happy Sam."

Sam felt the tears starting to roll down her cheeks as she heard the gentle concern in her sister's voice and looked at her mother through her tears and mouthed, "Thank you."

Alexis started wiping away her own tears as she said, "What are you thanking me for sweetheart? Kristina is your sister."

Sam pulled her sister into her arms as she rubbed her back and said, "It wouldn't be possible if it wasn't for you, so thank you….And you know what Kristina? I think you're right, I am happier with Cruz."

Cruz's grin started to split across his face from ear to ear as he placed a gentle arm around her shoulders and said, "Thank you for the vote of confidence Kristina, I won't let you down."

Alexis yawned from the bed and said, "You would think with this whole coma thing, I wouldn't be tired because I was sleep for weeks but it never fails, but right now I want to know what's for dinner."

Kristina looked at her father and said, "Daddy's going to cook."

Sonny leaned forward ready to move as Alexis pouted from her position behind him and said, "Does Daddy have to leave Mommy right now? Can't we find something else to eat?"

Sonny leaned back against the pillow as he kissed the top of his wife's head with a grin and said, "You heard the lady, we need to find a dinner we can all share together."

At once the voices rose together as one word was uttered, "Pizza."

The door opened suddenly as Epiphany stuck her face inside of the room ready to reprimand the visitors that were causing too much commotion but as she saw all of the people who were crowded into the tiny room with their faces full of joy she knew that she couldn't burst their bubble of happiness so she lowered her voice and whispered, "Pizza? Save me a slice please."

The laughter rang out as the door slowly slid shut and the family of Davis-Corinthos started to rebuild their family.

* * *

**End...until the Epilogue or my next story whichever comes first!**


	19. Epilogue

**A/N: **While there is no plausible excuse for the length in posting the epilogue,  
in my defense I must admit I was hit with a case of writers block so without further  
adieu, the epilogue to New Beginnings which will be shortly followed by the prologue  
of another story I'm writing. Let me know your thoughts.

**

* * *

****Epilogue **

"No way."

"Sonny!"

"Alexis"

Sonny stared at his wife from across the sofa and said, "We are coming up on our anniversary and you come at me with this now?"

Alexis waved her hand as she shrugged off his argument with a nod, "Our anniversary is six weeks from now, Corinthos besides it's just for a week."

Sonny scowled as he looked at her and said, "Three weeks away Davis, and I don't want you jet setting across the country just to help your ex-husband's brother."

Alexis crossed her arms as she rolled her eyes and said, "Jax is my good friend and you know that he wouldn't ask me if it wasn't important. Apparently Jerry got into some shady business dealings with some oversea investment company and he needs someone who understands international law to help save him."

Sonny looked at his wife with an impatient scowl and said, "Ex-husband who just happens to be a criminal."

Alexis smirked as she crossed her arms and looked at him with a grin, "Choice of words husband? I would watch those. Glass houses and stones and all."

Sonny crossed the room, "I don't want you without me I'll go with you."

Alexis shook her head, as she walked forward and pressed her lips to his, "This is business. You have our daughters to take care of, besides Jason and Liz are getting married next month and you still need to get fitted for your tux."

Sonny groaned as he thought of the impending marriage of his best friend, "And why do I have to get fitted now? It's still weeks away! I want to go with you."

Alexis laughed as she looked at the pout that he was suddenly sporting, "Enough with the pouting, you're not going and that's it."

"Going where?"

Sonny turned at the new voice that entered the room and smiled as she looked at the newly transformed Samantha McCall Davis-Rodriguez, she still had traces of the old Sam but the main difference was that she was loved. Not only by her family but also fulfilled by the man in her life, Alexis still praised the day that Cruz Rodriguez walked into her daughter's life.

"Samantha, do you have to wear those glasses everywhere?"

Sam pulled down her glasses as she squinted at her mother, "Look Mom, I don't have much of a choice, now do I? These law books you have me studying are not exactly in large print are they? Now what were you guys talking about leaving?"

Sonny turned to Sam and said, "Your mother has found it necessary to leave me days before our wedding anniversary."

Sam checked her watch and looked at Sonny confused, "Isn't your anniversary three weeks away?"

Alexis grinned as she knocked Sonny on the arm, "That's my child. Yes it is three weeks away sweetie, but don't worry I'll be back in time. Sonny's just upset; I'm leaving to go help Jerry Jax."

Sam sat down on the couch as she placed her books aside and folded her glasses, "I'm not too excited about that idea either Mom. I know Jax is your best friend but Jerry is not exactly known for his mild lifestyle."

Sonny shook his head, "Correction Samantha. I'm your mother's best friend, Jax just happens to be her ex-husband who she's still friendly with. But you have a point Jerry is not known for a clean lifestyle."

Alexis waved her hand before she got into the same old discussion with her husband that never seemed to end, "Semantics. Sam, nothing is going to happen to me and just to prove it, I'll ask you to come along. We are going to be touching into international law and while I know that's not the type of law you want to be practicing it will be good knowledge anyway, what do you think?"

Sam jumped up excited at the opportunity for a trip with her mother, even if it was only surrounding work, "I'm there, I just have to clear it with my husband."

Alexis crossed her arms in disbelief, "You have to clear your trips with Cruz?"

Sonny mumbled under his breath, "At least someone has the courtesy to clear their trips with spouses."

Alexis scowled as she turned back to her husband with a grimace, "I heard that Corinthos. Keep pushing and I'll prolong the proceedings until two days before our anniversary, you are skating on thin ice buddy."

Sam rolled her eyes at the pair, they were still in love as ever and their playful bantering stemmed from the ability to even be able to banter, it was something that had been sorely missed in their relationship and it seemed like they were making up for lost times. She excused herself, excited about the possibility of the trip and ran to call her husband at the station.

Sonny leaned forward as he curved his hand around her belly, "How's my son doing?"

Alexis sighed in exhaustion and happiness as she rubbed her lower back, "Your son is wearing his mother out. I never had this much problems with the girls but then again, I didn't think I would ever get pregnant again."

Sonny pulled her into his arms and kissed her on the cheek, "I told you I wanted us to have another child. You know how patient I can be when it's something I want."

He rubbed his hand over her belly slowly and was rewarded with a sharp thump that let him know that his son was present and accounted for, "I know that you have to go to help Jerry with his latest issue but I just wish it wasn't so close to your due date and our anniversary. It will be the first time we spent the month before our anniversary apart."

Alexis turned in his arms as best she could in her condition and wrapped her arms around his neck, and leaned her mouth closer to his angling for a kiss, "I love you Corinthos," she pulled back as she stared into his eyes that had suddenly become hazy with desire and said, "This is nothing but a routine business trip. You and the girls will have a ball, like you always do when I'm not here. Call Jason, Liz, Cameron, Cruz and Jake over here and then make it like a big slumber party."

Sonny sighed against her mouth as he struggled to deepen the kiss cradling her face in his hands and lifting her up into his arms pulling her flush against his body. Alexis felt herself being lifted off the floor as her legs were dangling in the air before they finally settled into a comfortable position, wrapped around his waist.

Sonny went back in for another kiss, when he heard a startled gasp.

"Geez, you're already pregnant you think that would be enough." Sonny and Alexis felt the sudden mood that had become ripe for lovemaking dampen their desire like a bucket of cold water as Carly entered the living room and sat down waiting for them to adjust themselves.

Alexis sighed long-sufferingly as she sat down and turned to Carly, "Yes how can we help you Carly?"

Sonny started rubbing his wife's back as away to keep his hands from wrapping themselves around Carly's neck for interrupting what was supposed to be his afternoon delight with his wife, "What is it Carly?"

Carly heard the underlying bite in both of their voices but didn't care to focus on the origin, "Listen Alexis, I'm glad you want to help Jax and all but I don't trust this Jerry character. I don't want anything to happen to you, so I'm asking you to butt out."

Sonny smiled, not actually grateful for her impromptu intrusion if it kept Alexis at home where she belonged, in his bed and in his arms. "See even Carly doesn't want you to go."

Alexis shoved at Sonny and said, "Carly where is this coming from? I just left Jax and he was begging me to go, I know this would upset him, why don't you really want me to go?"

Carly sighed, "Look Alexis, Jax has always been cleaning Jerry out of his messes, you should know when you were married to him, you had to help clear up his fair share of issues right?"

Alexis nodded, she couldn't deny the truth in her statement, "Yes, I was constantly getting Jerry out of trouble but I still don't see what this has to do with anything. Carly, what's wrong?"

Carly bit her bottom lip, "I'm pregnant. I can't go on the plane just yet because it's too soon into the pregnancy and I don't want Jax to go alone, I know you'll be there but let's face it you're neurotic and I need to know that someone is going to be there to give Jerry hell."

Alexis smiled, grateful that Carly was focusing on the wellbeing of her husband and not jealousy that they could possibly be in such close quarters, "Listen if I promise to learn at the Carly bitch clinic, will you train me on how to ream out Jerry so that the pregnant Mrs. Jax doesn't worry about her husband? Sam will learn as my apprentice so we can both Carlybitch Jerry out."

Carly stood up and exhaled in relief, "That's all I ask. Thanks Alexis, you can go back to what you two were doing."

Carly closed the door behind her and then Sonny started to laugh, his laughter started to get louder as it filled the living room, "Carly Bitch Clinic? She just accepted that? You and Sam are really going to learn how to Carlybitch Jerry out?"

Alexis shrugged, "She's pregnant. This is the first child for Jax and he needs to be worrying about Carly and not Jerry, whatever I can do to help them, both of them I'm willing to do. Besides, since she's so madly in love with Jax she doesn't bother you anymore she's actually become kinda tolerable."

Sonny laughed as he nodded in agreement and then reached for his wife ready to pick up where they left off but Alexis shook her head, "Sorry sweetheart but contrary to popular belief, Carly is still a mood killer. I'm going to pack."

Sonny scowled as he cursed ex-wives with bad timing.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Alexis knocked on her daughter's door and peeked her head into the room and called for her daughter,

"Kristina?"

"Yea Mom?"

Alexis rolled her eyes as she opened the door and saw Kristina sitting on her bed with her laptop propped up in front of her shopping. "Kristina Adela, you think you could find something more productive to do with your time? I don't know like study perhaps?"

Kristina leaned back and with a couple of clicks was staring her mother down with her father's frowning face and said, "Mom I have all straight A's what else can I do besides shop? Anyway, I'm not spending I'm just browsing, it's better than shopping. Besides, Daddy took away my credit card because I maxed out the limit."

Alexis shook her head as she sat on the edge of the bed and rubbed her stomach thoughtfully, "I have to go on a trip to help Uncle Jerry."

Kristina sighed in disgust, "Again Mom? You do know what's going to happen right? Dad's going to get worried and then want to fly to wherever you are and get you and then me and Cruz will have to calm him down while Sam talks him down from killing Jax…Can you save us the trouble and take him with you?"

Alexis laughed as she recalled mentally the last couple of occasions that she had helped out Jerry Jax and their consequences, "Unfortunately I won't be taking your father, I'm taking your older sister Sam though."

Kristina closed her eyes as she shook her head, "Oh great, that means there's just one less person I'll have to convince Dad not to fly after you….I'll have to start training Molly earlier than I thought…."

As her voice trailed off, Alexis laughed and said, "Kristina, I hate to burst your bubble but I think it's been well-established that your sister is a Daddy's girl."

Kristina rolled her eyes as she nodded at her mother in agreement, "Who knew that at five when I told her that we were sharing our father that she would grow into a Daddy's girl."

Alexis sighed as she looked at her daughter and said, "She loves your father and your father loves her."

Kristina leaned back against the headboard, "Yea and I'm not really upset, I'm just thinking about how I'm going to keep Dad away from your trip….This is going to cost you Mom, big. It's not going to be easy."

Alexis scowled and said, "Cost me big? What are you up to you little blackmailer? What are your terms to broker this deal?"

Kristina crawled to the edge of the bed, "Mom, since I can't promise that you will receive results since you taking half off my staff, Sam namely then you must allow me to have payment up front."

Alexis sighed as she nodded in agreement of the terms, "Please tell me you are going to use this power for good and not evil. Tell me you are looking into a career as a lawyer and not a casino owner."

Kristina's eyes twinkled as she listened to the worried tone, "Don't worry Mom. I promise I won't make you bail me out of jail one day….I might surprise you all and be the first legitimate lawyer who's also a casino owner."

Alexis snorted in disbelief and said, "Okay tell me then, what your terms are?"

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"What do you want Corinthos?"

Sonny scowled as he watched the tall Aussie fill up the doorway in his home. If it wasn't for how happy his ex-wife and his sons were he would be seriously tempted to take a hit out on the man who kept interfering in his life, "Why is Alexis going on another wild expedition at your request?"

Jax smirked as he slumped into the chair, "Believe me, I don't want her to go anymore than you do. I don't want to have to listen to Carly screeching jealously about Alexis but my mother called and begged me to have Alexis help out her wayward son once again."

Sonny sighed and said, "So this wasn't just you trying to sweep my wife away from me at the last moment."

Jax shook his head, "You are the last person on my mind Corinthos, I promise you. I want Alexis in and out of there as quickly as possible I promise you."

Sonny exhaled through his teeth and said, "Alexis and Sam are going on this expedition so take care of them. They mean a lot to me, both of them and I don't want to come after you or your brother if something happens to either one of them."

Jax laughed as he stood up and said, "I wouldn't dream of it, Alexis would have my head, and then there would be a never-ending line of people threatening my life if anything happened to either one of them."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Do you have to go too?"

Sam kissed her sister on the forehead and said, "It helps me with my major and I can keep an eye on Mom for you."

Kristina pouted as she rested her head against her sister's middle and said, "Who's going to help me keep Dad in line when he wants to fly around the world after Mom?"

Cruz laughed from his wife's side at his sister-in-law and the one he would be forever grateful for made a valid point. Ever since he had married into the wacky, Davis-Corinthos family he had been subjected to the oddest family rituals. The husband was responsible for cleaning, cooking and anything domestic like while the wife was responsible for keeping the husband out of jail if the occasion merited it and did a good job of it, if he did say so himself.

Alexis smiled as she came down the stairs with her hand pressed in the small of her back, massaging the knot that found its way there as she looked at her daughters and son-in-law with a smile, "What's all this laughter about?"

Kristina rolled her eyes and said, "You know what it's about! You're taking Sam and leaving me with any allies should Dad try to go after Mom."

Alexis scoffed as she looked to the couch where Molly was lying down reading the latest version of Supernatural Weekly, who knew that she would be the child that was blessed with hints of her deceased aunt. There were times that she would be talking to Molly and she felt like she was drifting into a fight of long ago between her and Kristina.

Molly peeked from under the magazine and said, "Why shouldn't Daddy go after Mom if he gets worried? I think it's sweet."

Kristina scowled as she plopped down next to her sister and pulled the magazine out of her hands and threw it on the table, "Come on Mol, let's play a game of poker."

Molly sighed long-sufferingly, she had reason to be upset, but she never allowed her temper to get the best of her she always kept it under control, "Kristina, why do you ask me to play? You know Dad, taught you all of the ways to cheat. He was trying to teach me but he says I don't have a good poker face," She grumbled as she pouted and handled the cards her sister was pressing in her fingers.

Kristina laughed as she crossed her legs in front of her and started to play poker, Alexis looked to Sam helplessly and said, "I don't know what to do with your sisters."

"Stay here and take care of them."

Cruz looked down at the voice of his pseudo-father-in-law who he knew was more than livid that he was going to be left wifeless for a couple of days. "Sonny, don't start." As he heard the voice of his mother-in-law he knew that there was going to be a fight if someone didn't avert it, straight away.

Fortunately for him, the voice of reason stuck her head over the couch and said, "Dad you know stress isn't good for the baby. Mom will be back soon, now come teach me those poker cheats you promised."

Changing the subject was always an effective way that Molly had found that kept her father from worrying about her mom, like he tended to do whether she was in the same house, same car or same continent, it was just something his Dad loved to do and she refused to take the privilege away even if he was tiresome. Sonny walked over to the sofa and plopped down next to his youngest daughter and watched the game disinterestedly for a moment before Molly leaned back against his chest and he felt a shift in his heart, this was his daughter. The one Alexis shared with him everyday, he met her eyes and was struck by the same emotion being emoted in them, and he whispered, 'I love you.'

Alexis leaned over the edge of the couch and pressed a gentle kiss to his lips, "I love you Sonny, and I will be safe. Sam will be with me the whole time and she won't let anything happen to me, stop worrying, and teach our daughter how to cheat at poker."

Sonny's dimples blazed as they met hers and Sonny finally nodded and let go of the knot that been in his throat since he heard of this impending trip.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Sam looked at her mother who was sleeping soundly in the seat next to her and bit her lip again as she wondered if she should, ask the question that had been plaguing her for weeks.

"I see you staring at me again, are you finally going to tell me what's bothering you?"

Sam shook her head as Alexis opened one eye to stare at her daughter questioningly and said, "For the last couple of weeks, every time I look up I see your eyes on me, and it's in question. Do you have something you want to ask me?"

Sam nodded and said, "I don't want to move the past for you but since Cruz and I decided we were going to try to have a baby, the obstetrician was asking on our background history, I could provide everything for me and you but my father's side….," Sam let her voice trail off as she wondered about the man who had been the cause for her birth, at times hoping that she had been the product of a grand love affair or at the very least a relationship that meant something.

Alexis sighed as she looked at her daughter and said, "I know it's important for you to know your origins and especially if you are going to be starting a family someday but I don't think talking about this on the plane is the best forum, why don't we wait until….."

Sam rolled her eyes as she watched her mother stroke her burgeoning belly nervously, "Mom, this isn't an interrogation, I love you and I'm not going to make you say anything you don't want too, I just want answers to questions…."

Alexis smiled briefly, hiding her true feelings behind a smile that was belying her true nervousness; she opened her mouth to answer when Sam's cell phone rang. Alexis looked up and verified that they could talk and nodded as Sam spoke into the cell phone, "Hello," Sam pulled the phone away from her ear and rolled her eyes, "Yes Sonny, we made it on the plane fine….No Mom isn't pushing herself, she's….."

Alexis shook her head vehemently backing away from the cell phone as if it was a rattlesnake, as she quickly moved out of the airplane seat and waddled towards the bathroom, "Mom!" Sam stopped her mother's hand and shoved the cell phone into it, "Yes Dear?"

Sonny exhaled a deep, cleansing breath, "Why were you avoiding my call?"

Alexis swatted at her daughter as she moved back into the seat grumbling under her breath, "We've been in the air exactly 15 minutes, you have timed the exact moment that the light goes off and allows phones to go on and here you are already smothering me, your son and I are fine Corinthos. How are my girls?"

The grumble could be heard over the phone as Sonny's displeasure was made known loudly into Alexis's ear. She pulled the phone away from her and exhaled a deep breath before leaning against the chair on the plane and whispering words of comfort into his ears, "I love you Sonny. I hope you know that, I love you and I love our lives but I also love my family even the ones you can't stand…That happens to be Jax at this moment."

Sonny's voice came over the line, "Didn't you say something similar to Jax a couple of years ago?"

Alexis laughed huskily as the memory rushed through her head, "Yea and as I remember I tried to distract you from delving further into my psyche by trying to discuss baseball which kinda fell through."

Alexis rubbed her back as she felt a sharp twang and sat down in the chair and said, "Look we are fine, stop worrying and have fun while I'm away. You won't have too much more once your son arrives, I have a feeling he's going to be a fighter."

After murmuring their 'I love you's' Alexis hung up the cell phone and looked at her eldest daughter who was waiting patiently on a response to her question. She wanted to know about her father, but Alexis didn't even know where to begin.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

_Italy_

As they were ushered into their room Alexis couldn't help but be glad for the luxury she was being pampered to thanks to her ex-husband, "Grazie," was the word she said to the bellman after laying down their bags.

"No, no Signore. Non posso accettare i soldi. Signor Jax"

Alexis rolled her eyes as the man explained in fluent Italian, that he wasn't allowed to accept money from her because of her ex-husband. As he closed the door behind them, Alexis turned to her daughter who was sitting on the edge of the bed staring at her mother carefully.

Alexis sat on the edge of the two queen beds that were directly facing each other in their palatial suite and said, "So what is the problem?"

Sam exhaled softly as she reached for her purse and deposited her glasses on her face and shook her head and said, "We discussed everything about law, international and otherwise. But the one answer I really want, you won't give me and I'm wondering if I need to even bother with the answer."

Alexis sighed and leaned forward, "This is hard for me to discuss. So many parts of my life before Alexis Davis are still a blur to me because it was easier that way. I learned along the way to cope by shutting down my mind to everything I go through. It prevented me from worrying about the guilt I would feel or the sorrow that never went anywhere. When I left my father's house, even though I didn't know it was my father's house I swore that I would never look back and I didn't….."

Sam watched as the emotions started mirroring in her mother's face and instantly regretted the question but was prevented from saying as such as her mother received a phone call.

"Alexis Davis?"

Sam watched her mother enraptured as a moment before she had been emotionally vulnerable and suddenly as if a light switch had been used she was once again the extremely successful lawyer who very rarely lost a case.

Sighing Alexis hung up her cell phone and looked at her daughter, "I'm sorry Sam we can pick up this conversation later we have to be in court. It seems Jerry's court date was moved up."

Sam gasped, "I thought you were going to have at least two days to prepare your case."

Alexis shrugged her coat back on her shoulders and said, "As did I but it appears as with all things Jerry spontaneity is the key."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

"Dad, will you stop pacing I can't read your horoscope."

Sonny stopped in the middle of the room to steal a look at his youngest daughter who was dead serious in her statement and wondered silently how Alexis and he had been given another chance with Molly to right all the wrongs they did with Kristina, her sister.

"Molly, your mother hasn't called me yet. She was supposed to call me as soon as they got to the hotel. What if she went into early labor? What if she didn't get off the plane safely? What if she's in danger and needs me?"

His eldest daughter came running down the stairs with Cruz hot on her heels as she shot out explanations as quickly as he shout out worst-case scenarios, "What if Mom and Sam wanted to shop at all the places in Italy? What if Mom and Sam wanted some gelato? What if they met 2 hot Italian men who are taking them…."

Cruz placed a hand over Kristina's mouth and said, "You are not helping little sis."

Kristina blushed as Cruz dropped his hand from her mouth and she looked towards her father apologetically, "Daddy sorry about the last one but come on be serious, Mom loves you and if there was really a problem she would've found a way to let you know. Stop worrying and listen to your heart. Mom would tell you if she needed you."

Molly jumped up and said, "Finally, I was able to read your horoscope Dad. It says be on the lookout for dangers that will arise in your family. Whew, I'm going to make dinner."

Sonny looked at Kristina and reached for the phone, "I'm calling my pilot. We leave here in 2 hours."

Kristina ran to the phone and said, "Dad, we can't go flying halfway across the world because of the horoscope that Molly read….She's never right, please Dad stop overacting. Mom and Sam are fine."

As she reached for the phone she mentally decided she was going to raise her bill the next time her mother wanted her as interference. This was becoming more and more tedious as time went on.

"I'll let you use one of my credit cards in Italy."

Kristina dropped her hand from the phone receiver, "Done, I'm going to get packed. Sorry Cruz Mom got overruled."

Cruz rolled his eyes in disgust at his sister-in-law as she happily skipped up the stairs and turned to his semi-father-in-law and snorted. "I'll go but only because I miss my wife and I won't miss a free trip to Italy. But I'm warning you before we go that your wife will kill you."

Sonny looked at him briefly before his pilot answered, "Yea Marco. Gas up the jet we are going to Italy. I need to be there ASAP."

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

_Thirteen Hours Later _

Alexis sighed in exhaustion as she looked at her daughter who was staring at her in awe. She sent a smirk briefly at Jerry and said, "Next time you get yourself out of this mess. I almost didn't save your assets this time."

Jerry raised an eyebrow at her but as she pointed to her belly he laughed and walked off, after offering them a free tour of the city which they both turned down. Alexis waited for Sam to stand up as she laid a arm on her daughter's shoulder and said, "So what do you say we find an Italian spa and pamper ourselves before we head back home."

Sam laughed and said, "That sounds like a plan to me. You were wonderful in there; I only hope I can be that gifted when I finally become an lawyer."

Alexis smiled, "Of course you will, it's in the genes."

Sam looked down before looking back at her with wet eyes, "You're right it's in the genes. Well, your genes at least. Standing there watching you passionately fight helped me realize that even though I don't know my father, I'll be fine. I have you and that's more than I ever expected to be given in this life. I have a wonderful husband who supports my every decision and desire, I can have genetic testing done to see what to avoid but I won't pressure you anymore for answers about my father."

Alexis stopped ni the middle of the lobby and searched her daughter's face, "Are you sure? If you need me to….,"

Sam shrugged her shoulders, "No Mom, I'm fine really. Stop worrying, come on lets go to that spa."

As they looped arms and started walking towards the elevators they were stopped dead in their tracks at the sight of their family stopping in front of them. Alexis closed her eyes in disbelief as she asked Sam a question through clenched teeth, "Please tell me that I'm not seeing what I think I'm seeing."

Sam coughed a laugh into her hand as she looked at her husband who was nervously looking at her while Kristina was trying to hide all of her purchases behind her back, "Uh Mom….You're not hallucinating, we have company in Italy. Sonny, Molly, Kristina and my husband."

Alexis opened her eyes and glared at her husband who was staring at her agitated as well. She walked up to him and said, "Don't even start with me Corinthos."

Sonny snorted as he held out her cell phone to her and said, "They have phones in Italy as I'm sure you're aware Davis. I bought you an international cell phone for just this occurrence."

Alexis paused as she looked at her husband, "I was in court where they don't allow cell phones. I didn't have time to deal with the hysterical worrying of my husband. Kristina, I thought I paid you handsomely to avoid just this type of exhibit."

Kristina looked at her mother guiltily before rubbing a quick hand over her belly, "Don't upset my little brother," at the glare she received launched into an explanation worthy of an Oscar, "Mom it was Dad's fault. He trumped your initial offer with a credit card with no limit…No limit Mom. I have spent almost 200 Euros already and Dad says we aren't done."

Sonny grinned as he looked at his wife, "She's a smart kid that one."

Alexis rolled her eyes as she saw her eldest daughter cozying up with her husband and was pleased that the trip wasn't in vain for everyone.

She looked at Molly with a sigh, "Why didn't you try to stop your father?"

Molly gave her mother a quick hug, "I missed you too Mom so I told Dad about a fake horoscope that I knew would work. Sorry Dad." Sonny and Alexis looked at Molly in disbelief.

Kristina grinned in admiration, "Good going lil sis, you might just be worthy of my tutelage just yet."

Alexis sighed in disbelief at her family and turned to her husband, "Well I guess we can go home now. Well, we have to go to the hotel first."

Sonny put a hand around her waist as he kissed the side of her face, "The plane has been fueled for almost 2 hours, your luggage was one of the first items boarded."

As Alexis and Sonny walked off to their crazy lives, they were both happy that they had been fortunate enough to receive a new beginning.

**The End **


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